Puzzle Pieces
by LetUsSmile
Summary: AU fic. Leonard and Penny are in the same high school together. They just haven't met yet.
1. Nothing matters

**Hi! :) This is my first fanfic ever and I'm not that great at writing so forgive me if I make any mistakes. Enjoy! **

**I don't own any of the characters except for a few minor ones that might appear throughout the story. **

Penny dragged herself across the room to her friends who were occupying the middle section of the school cafeteria. They could be easily distinguished from everyone else, the hunks, jocks, and cheerleaders, the typical popular group that exists in every high school. On any other day, Penny would have no problem tolerating and pretending to join in with their gossip, but today she just didn't give a damn about who's hot and who's not. She had neither the energy nor was she in the mood for that load of crap. She had had a rough day and she was sure that none of her friends would understand. They never do.

She wished that she had someone to talk to, someone who would be there when she was down and comfort and soothe her and tell her that everything was going to be okay. Even though they might not be okay for a while, it sure would be nice to have someone tell you that it will, but she had no one for that.

She quietly sat herself down beside her friends to avoid any interaction. She took small bites of her sandwich and thought about what she was going to do for the rest of her day. She didn't want to stay at school and put up with all the boring classes, and even if she did with all that has happened to her today she wouldn't be able to concentrate. Not that she ever did anyway.

She thought she might just tell the teacher that she didn't feel well and go home. It wasn't entirely a lie. She did feel sick. Just not the kind of sick that usually grants her the permission to go home. Sick from what she had seen. She needed to go somewhere quiet, where she could just let all the tears that she has held inside out.

"Penny." She was so deep in thought that she didn't hear one of her friends calling out to her.

"Penny!" This time a little louder, jerking her back from her train of thoughts.

"You okay? You seem a little off." Her friend Jillian questioned her with a look of concern on her face.

"Yeah. I'm fine." Penny replied monotonously.

"You sure? 'Cuz you always say you're fine when you're not and we're here for you if you need us, you know?" She gestured to herself and the two girls Abby and Krista around her.

"No, I'm fine, really. Don't worry about it." _Like you would understand. The best advice you could give is probably telling me to sleep with some random guy to forget about my problems._

"So how's Matt?" Krista questioned.

_Ugh. _"He's fine." She choked slightly over the last word, but it went unnoticed.

"You don't seem _fine._ What is with you and the word fine today?" Abby eyed her with suspicion.

"You know what? I think I feel a little sick, so I'm gonna leave early today." Penny couldn't take all the questioning anymore, and if she stayed she would probably start crying in front of them, and no way was she going to let that happen.

She started to pack up her lunch, and glanced at the clock in the cafeteria. As she stood up she thought she saw someone staring at her and did a double take, but when she did she had lost the person in the crowd.

It didn't matter. Nothing matters. At least for now.

* * *

Penny closed the door behind her as she stepped out of the staff room She was lucky that the teacher-in-charge at that time didn't really care and gave her an early slip for her to go home. She whipped out her phone and called the first and only person who could help her right now. It rang for a few seconds and the other end picked up.

"Hello?"

"Hey Mom, it's me."

"Hi sweetie, what's up?" Her mother replied in a light and happy tone in her voice.

"Can you come and pick me up from school?" Penny said with a tone of desperation in her voice.

"Now? I'm a little busy at the moment, I don't think I can pick you up until at least 2 hours later. Is something up sweetie? Do you need to talk?"

"No, it's fine mom. You're busy, I'll talk to you later. I'll just walk home myself."

"I would prefer if you took the bus home, but I sense that you don't want to be around people at the moment? If that's the case, be careful, okay?"

"Yeah, you know me best." Penny smiled for the first time of that day. "Thanks mom, I'll be careful. See you later. Love you, bye."

"Bye sweetie."

The line went dead and Penny locked her phone before putting it back into her pocket. She decided she would take a little rest before walking home. She made her way to the back gate of the school where she would leave from afterwards. She opened the door leading outside and sat down on the steps a few meters from the back gate.

It was quiet and she noticed there was no one around. Here she could unleash all the feelings that she had held in all day. She could let her tears free, and she would feel so much better after that. But what if someone were to see her sitting on the steps sobbing like a baby? That would make her the laughing stock of the school. She wouldn't be able to face anyone anymore. But it was such a quiet place that no one, she thought, no one would ever step in at this time of the day. Besides, most of them are probably in class by now. It was a tug of war between her feeling better and risking her status in the school. Were her feelings worth risking?

She decided they were.

She closed her eyes and her tears came pouring out. She just hoped that no one would notice her in this sorry state that she was in.

**So that's that. :) Leave me a review and tell me what you think. **


	2. The worst day of her life

**Thanks to everyone who read and reviewed. I love you guys already. Hehe. :P And here you go, chapter 2. :)**

Penny breathed out an audible sigh when no tears were left to escape her eyes. Her eyes felt swollen and they stung when she reached up to wipe the remainder of her tears off her face. She did feel better than before but she was nowhere near happy.

She picked up her bag, stretched a little and started to walk towards the back gate. She had barely walked two steps when she heard something drop behind her. Immediately, she spun her head around and saw someone sitting on a nearby bench beside the bush. He had a book in his right hand and he was bending down to pick up his bag which had fallen off the bench.

Her eyes widened in an instant and her mouth dropped when she realised that someone had just witnessed her sobbing for what felt like ten years. Penny was a strong person, she rarely cried. This was one of the rare occasions where she let her emotions get the better of her. And every time in the past when she had let that happen she was by herself. Her mother hadn't even seen her cry, except for when she was a baby. But that was different, every baby cries. She always told people to leave her alone and they always listened. And this was probably one of the worst times where anyone could have caught her crying. It lasted way longer than any of her previous times when she had cried.

The boy looked up at her when he had placed his bag on the bench.

"Oops." That was the only thing he said when he noticed the look of horror on her face.

"How…how long have you been sitting there?" She stared at him for what seemed like forever before she managed to get the words out of her mouth.

"Long enough to have seen everything. Quite an interesting sight I must say, it's not every day you get to see a girl like you cry like that." He answered with a smirk.

"Interesting? Wha…a girl like…who the hell are you anyway?" Her mind alternated between the millions of questions that she had for him. She eyed him completely, and noticed he had a pair of black-rimmed glasses sitting on the bridge of his nose. He dressed neatly, and didn't look like the kind of guy who would spread a rumour about her crying like a 3 year old. He didn't look like the kind of guy who would spread a rumour about anything. However, his attitude told her differently.

"I don't see a reason as to why I should tell you my name. Even if I did tell you, you would probably spread some awful rumour about me, and forget my name after a week. That's what all of you people do, isn't it? So, for my own protection, I don't think telling you my name would be a wise choice."

_Why the hell is this guy being such a jerk?_ Penny didn't know what to say, she just continued staring at him, suppressing all the anger that is building inside of her.

Seeing as she didn't respond, he continued, "So what happened, Miss Popular? Got dumped by your boyfriend?" His voice was dripping with sarcasm, and that pissed her off to no end.

She could just punch him right now, but he would then call out and people would start coming, and she didn't need anyone else seeing her with her red and puffy eyes. She responded to his question with a hint of anger in her voice, "It's none of your business." She paused. "Listen up jerk, you better not tell anyone about what you saw." She immediately regretted the tone that she had used with him, because it would probably piss him off even more and put her in even more danger of people knowing about her breakdown.

She expected him to reply with a "Or what?" or some kind of annoying response, but all he responded with was, "Okay miss, whatever you say."

It didn't sound very convincing, but she had to count on it. She just hoped that he wasn't the jerk that he seemed to be.

When she said nothing further, he turned his attention back to the book in his hands. She wanted to thank him but he had been such a jerk to her. She just stood there awkwardly for a few seconds before turning away to leave.

"Bye." She heard him say.

She didn't reply him and continued to the gate. As she did, she turned her head back and gave him one last glance but his eyes were focused on his book. Something told her he looked back up and stared at her when she turned her head back and walked away. But for some reason she was afraid to turn around to see him staring at her.

She picked up her pace and left quickly after she was out the gate. She was still doubtful of his response to her demanding his silence on the matter. Tomorrow she could turn up at school being humiliated by every single person, or it could just be like any other day, with no one else other than herself and that guy knowing what had happened.

She just wanted this day to be over and fade into history. She didn't want to be reminded of it ever again. It had to be one of the worst days of her life, or so she thought.

What she didn't know, or has yet to know, is ironically, what seemed to be the most horrible day of her life, might turn out to just be the luckiest day of her life.


	3. I think I like you already

**Didn't think people were actually gonna like Leonard being such an ass. xD Anyway, here's chapter 3. :)**

The walk to school the following day was nerve wrecking. The instant Penny crosses the boundary between her school and outside, she was going to find out if the latest gossip is of her bawling like a baby. And the people would have exaggerated it so much that she will no longer be able to face anyone.

Her mind had been circulating around the guy she met the day before. Usually, anyone that looked like him she could probably trust, and never would she have thought that a person could be such a jerk when they didn't look like one. Especially not someone who looks so much like a nerd. Well, like they say, you can never judge a book by its cover. His strange combination stuck to her mind all day, and no matter how hard she tried to divert her attention to something else, she found it impossible to do.

She had arrived at her school's front gate and had been standing there for several minutes. She kept her fingers crossed as she stepped into the school, immediately scanning for any faces that might already be mocking her. She felt a little relieved when no one pointed at her and laughed, but she knew it was not over yet. The biggest deal to her would be her friends knowing about it. Never would she ever appear weak in front of them, because if she does, that is when she will become the source of their humour, and get pushed around by them all the time. She has seen it happen to several other girls but it has never happened to her and she wouldn't want it to.

As she approached her friends who were hanging out near the lockers before class like usual, she noticed them laughing among themselves, and they were laughing pretty hard. She was instantly hit with fear. Had they found out? Oh crap. They did, didn't they? They noticed her and each gave her a little wave, motioning for her to join them.

"Hey, what's up?" Penny spoke as casually as possible.

"Oh, nothing much. Same old. What happened to you yesterday?" Jillian questioned.

"It's nothing really. Sorry about that, I was just feeling a little moody. And I felt kinda sick, so I left early." She didn't want to talk to them about her problems, but she had to find out about whether they knew what happened. "So, what's funny?"

"Oh, you'll never believe this. I saw the funniest video online yesterday." She removed her phone from her pocket. "Here, I've got it on my phone, I'll show you."

She was immediately overcome with relief when she realised that they don't know a thing. Everything was back to normal. Guessed she could have trusted that guy after all.

* * *

The bell for lunch sounded and Penny made her way to the cafeteria with her friends. They found an empty spot straightaway and sat themselves down immediately catching up with whatever latest gossip is going around the school. "Hey, did you guys hear about Nick breaking up with his girlfriend?" Krista said with a little too much excitement in her voice. Penny, started to unpack, and as usual pretended to listen and join in with whatever they were talking about.

Then, Penny recalled there was something that she wanted to do and shoved the things she had unpacked back into her bag. "Sorry guys, just remembered there was something that I have to do. I'll see you guys later." She gave them a little wave and left before they could respond.

Penny made her way down the halls that she had just been in the day before, opening the very same door that led her to the back of the school. She walked down the steps and approached the bench where he had sat on a day ago, and is sitting on right now.

"Hey." She called out.

He looked up from his book in response and didn't say a word.

"Um..I just wanted to say thanks for not telling anyone." She spoke after a moment of awkward silence. "And um, sorry about yesterday. If I sounded mean or rude or anything."

"Sure. That's what you wanted, wasn't it? Sure is rare for someone like you to apologise though." He maintained the same smug voice from before.

"Why are you being such a jerk? Did I do something to offend you?" She exclaimed, no longer able to control herself.

He remained silent, and she felt a pang of guilt having shouted at him. "Okay look. Why don't we just start over again? I'm Penny." She extended a hand for him to shake.

"Okay."

"Okay? What do you mean okay? What's your name?" She asked her hand still extended.

"Leonard." He answered. "And I'll feel weird shaking your hand so…yeah"

Her hands went back to their natural position upon hearing that. "So, why _are _you such a jerk?" She questioned again.

Leonard set his book down. "Okay, look. I'm sorry I've been such a jackass." Penny gave him a _you think?_ look. "It's just, I've never really been around girls like you before and I just went with the first personality that came to mind."

"And the first thing that came to mind was to be a jerk?" She gave him a sceptical look. "And would you stop grouping me with those other bitches. I hate that."

"Really?" It was his turn to look doubtful.

Penny quickly realised that she had revealed something to him that she has never revealed to anyone before. Why is it that this guy manages to break her defences? Even though he hadn't forced her to do anything, it just seemed that around him, her defences just naturally come down.

"Yeah um, I would appreciate if you didn't tell anyone about that either."

"Sure thing." Leonard realised she was still standing, so he moved his bag over and patted the now empty seat next to him, indicating for her to sit down.

"So you hate hanging out with the popular people. That's… interesting. Most people would probably die to be you." He stated when she swept the seat briefly with her hand before sitting herself down beside him.

"Yeah." She wondered if she could talk to him about the things that she had wanted to get out for so long. She had only just met him a day ago. "No, it's not that great."

"I'll bet I can find a thousand people who would disagree." He noticed her give a little smile before he continued, "So tell me more about yourself. You are so strange, but I think I like you already."

She sent another smile his way as she pondered how the day before he had seemed like the biggest jerk and now it looks like he had already became the closest friend she has.

_Yeah, I think I like you too._

**So yeah. Sorry to disappoint if you guys wanted Leonard to be an ass throughout the whole story. I hadn't intended for the story to go that way. Although maybe somewhere down the line, I might bring out badass Leonard. Maybe. ;) And thanks again to everyone who read and reviewed. :)**


	4. Opening up

Leonard and Penny had been exchanging facts about themselves and each found the other intriguing. Neither has met any other person in their lives that they could establish such a deep connection with simply after a five minute conversation.

"I still don't really understand the whole you disliking your friends thing. I mean, how does that even work?"

"Really? That's your question? You're like a freaking genius, surely you can figure it out."

"Well, I mean, yeah I get why the normal people don't really like them, not that I'm saying you're abnormal or anything…how can I put this?" he paused for a moment. "Okay, in school there is this social hierarchy. Well there is actually a social hierarchy everywhere, but in school it's probably divided into three different groups. The popular ones are of course on top, at the bottom it's the nerds, like me, and then there are those in between."

She gave him a sympathetic look when he classified himself as being at the bottom of the hierarchy, but he just smiled and said, "Don't worry about it, I get called a nerd all the time, I'm used to it. In fact, I feel proud to be one." His smile broadening as he spoke.

"Anyway, back on topic, obviously the nerds view the popular ones differently from how they view themselves. They probably don't even realise they are being such jerks. And that is what I find interesting about you, it seems to me that you do realise they are being jerks. And I just realised I've answered my own question." He turned to her, feeling rather silly.

She just grinned at his silliness. "Yeah, and I hate being one of them. I mean, people just look at me and they think I'm a bitch. Like you did. It's so annoying trying to put up with all their crap."

"Then why do you do it?"

Why did she do it? Why were she friends with these people? Penny had no idea. She racked her brain trying to come up with an answer, and the best she could get out was, "Because I kinda have to."

"Yeah I guess, since you're so beautiful and all." He said with a sincere smile.

Penny immediately felt the butterflies in her belly. Never had she been called beautiful by a guy, the term guys usually used on her was 'hot', and by simply altering the word a little completely changed the effect that it has on her.

"Thanks."

Penny was the first to break the silence. "So, my turn for a question?"

"Yep." He replied with a nod.

"Do you always sit here?" Leonard had expected her to ask a more personal question, as the next question he had in mind for her was rather personal, and he wanted to make sure he wasn't crossing any lines.

"Yeah I do. It's so quiet here and nobody ever comes so I can actually read in peace. Plus I'd rather read than interact with other people. I guess it sort of became my spot."

"But you wouldn't mind sharing?"

"Of course not."

"Okay, your turn."

"What happened yesterday?" Penny was taken aback by how personal the question was. She had opened up to him more than she thought she could, but she wasn't sure if she was ready for something so personal. He noticed her hesitation, and instantly regretted it, "Sorry. You don't have to answer that if you don't want to."

"No. No it's fine. I need to get it out." She breathed out a sigh. "I caught my boyfriend cheating on me with some bitch in the bathroom stall." She hesitated again before continuing, "But I don't think that's actually what I was upset about. I was going to break up with him anyway, he was forcing me to do things that I refuse to do."

"I'm sorry...Wait, was he forcing you to-"

"Yep." She cut him off mid-sentence.

"So you've never-"

"No."

"Wow, never would have imagined that you haven't had…wait so what did you tell your friends?" Leonard was surprised by the revelation.

"I lied to them. Anyway, I'm just sick of getting cheated on by these jerks. Every single time, I tell myself it doesn't matter and put it aside, but I guess I just couldn't contain it in anymore. I just wish there was someone who is sweet and nice, and would wait for me as long as I need to get ready. Isn't there anyone out there who is like that and not just in it for the sex?"

"I'm sure he is out there somewhere. You just gotta wait for it, I'm sure he will come eventually." Leonard reassured her with a smile.

"I'm sorry to bother you with my problems." Penny looked at him apologetically.

"No, no it's fine. You feel better after you get it out. Just keep going for as long as you need."

"I think I'm done for now. I haven't opened up like this to anyone since… I've never opened up like this to anyone before." She said, a little embarrassed. "There wasn't anyone that I could really talk to."

"So you trust me?" He said with a goofy grin on his face.

"I hope I'm making the right decision in doing so. Don't tell anyone about this." She reminded him again.

"All our conversations will only be restricted to the two of us. I can swear on my life if you want."

"No, don't do that!"

He chuckled slightly at her exclamation, "It's not like I've got anyone to tell."

The school bell interrupted her before she could say anything, signalling for her to go to her next class. "Wow, that must have been the shortest lunch I've ever had in my life."

"Same here."

She grabbed her bag and stood up, "Thanks a lot, I guess I'll see you soon. And you should get out there a little, some chicks dig nerds! Bye!" She winked at him before making her way to her next class.

"Bye." Leonard replied after she was gone, with a smile plastered on his face.


	5. Best Friend

Penny shut her locker door before deciding against going to the cafeteria like she did every day during lunch. What was the point? She wouldn't give a rat's ass what they were gossiping away about. Plus, she had found a new place and a new friend to hang out with, and though it did include the same amount of talking, or perhaps even more, she didn't mind it. With Leonard, she could have an actual real conversation instead of having a discussion about guys or gossiping about others which she had zero interest in. She had only known him for the third day now and she felt he already had a huge impact on her. He showed her something that she has never seen before, that there were actual nice people in the world out there. If only she had met him sooner, she would have had a much more pleasant high school life.

She opened the door for the third time that week, receiving the very same feeling she had felt for the past two days. It was a feeling of escape and freedom, like she was released from all the crap she had to endure inside school. Outside she could be herself, and she could say or feel or do whatever she wants because there would be no one to around to judge. She could be laughing or crying, but Leonard's face would never be filled with mock. She knew for sure.

"Hey." She gave him a little wave, using the very same opening phrase she had used the day before.

"Hey, I knew you'd show up." He replied with a genuine smile, completely different to what she was used to getting.

"Then what's with the book?" She gestured to the book in his hands before walking over to take a seat beside him.

"Just in case, you know." He responded with a smile, packing the book away in his bag. "How's school been treating you?"

"Same old. I can't wait to graduate and just get away from this hellhole."

"Not long now. A few more months till we are free."

"Never knew you were in the same grade."

"Really?" He looked over at her and raised an eyebrow.

"Well, I just assumed you were. We have only known each other for a few days. I don't know _everything_ about you. Though I wouldn't mind knowing."

"I guess." He leaned backwards against the wall. "So, how are you feeling?"

"Not particularly well." She replied with a tone of sadness present in her voice.

"I thought I made you feel better yesterday."

"You did. I felt much better than I did before, there's just some stuff I have to…" She didn't finish her sentence.

"What? What stuff? I'll do whatever you need to make you feel better."

"No…you don't have to."

"I want to. C'mon, tell me what it is." Leonard realised he was being a little over-persistent. "I'm not trying to sound needy or anything."

"No, I know." She let out a sigh. "Okay. I left some things over at Matt's that I need but I don't know if I should go over and get it."

"You should. You definitely should." He said without a doubt.

"But…"

He unconsciously put his hand over hers to reassure her. When he realised he left it there, he didn't draw it back because she hadn't move her hand an inch.

"It's your stuff. It belongs to you, and if you need it you should go and get it back from him."

"I don't know…"

"What did you do with the stuff you left at your other boyfriends' houses?"

"I never got them back. I don't want to, it's awkward, plus they would probably have had some other bitch with them. I don't want them to rub in my face that I got cheated on."

"You know what? I'm gonna go with you this time."

"What?" She was surprised by his proposal.

"I mean, I probably can't do much, but it's better to have someone there with you. I'll try my best to help you get your things back." He regarded her unsure expression that was still fixed on her face. "We'll go tomorrow since it's Saturday, assuming you don't have anything on tomorrow."

"No…"

"C'mon you have to do this. Otherwise you'll just keep losing your stuff. Actually from now on I will be your ex-boyfriend stuff collector. But hopefully this would be the one and only time I have to do it."

She giggled a little at him making up his own phrase. "I don't even know if there is such a thing as an ex-boyfriend stuff collector."

He was glad she made her laugh, a small change from what she had been feeling for the past few days he has known her. "Okay, we're doing this? Where do I meet you tomorrow?"

"My place. I'll give you an address." She unzipped her bag and reached for a pen and some paper.

"Wow, don't you think this is developing a little too quickly? You're already giving me your address." He joked.

Even though she knew he was joking, he was right. Their friendship had blossomed quickly. With any other guy, she would have started distancing herself, but with Leonard she didn't care. In fact, she liked it.

"It doesn't matter." She passed over the slip of paper with her address printed on it to him.

"Wow."

"What?"

"I live two streets down from you. Weird that I've never actually seen you before." He turned his attention back from the piece of paper to her. "How about I give you my address as well? I feel a little weird having your address, and you have no idea where I live."

"Alright." She passed the paper that she had clutched in her hands over to him.

"Can I tell you a secret?"

"What have you been telling me so far?"

"I guess this is a different kind of secret. I don't know." She responded to his joke.

"Oh sure. You can tell me anything. I'm sure you already knew that." He smiled reassuringly, his hand still on hers.

"Yeah I do." She had noticed that his hand had been resting on hers for quite a while now, but she liked it. She felt protected in a way; it told her that he would always be there for her when she needs him.

"Leonard?"

"Yeah?"

"You're my best friend." She stated simply.

His face lit up when she heard her. He squeezed her hands and gazed at her, "You're my best friend too."


	6. Not Fine At All

Penny heard the doorbell the instant it rang through her house. She glanced briefly at the digital clock on her desk. 11:00. He was straight on time. "I'll get it!" she called out as she jumped slightly off her chair and hurried to her door. She opened it, and there he was, clad in a hoodie and a pair of jeans with a small backpack, one of its straps resting on his shoulder. His right hand was wrapped around the bottom half of the strap, his left hand casually placed in one of his pockets. He looked like he was going to do an upward nod of acknowledgement and nonchalantly say '_Sup?_, pretending like he was one of the cool guys. Instead, she saw his face brighten as he slowly came into vision and voiced a "Hey." like they always do at the beginning of their conversations.

"Hey. Right on time."

"Of course. You look great." He said as he eyed her briefly.

"Thanks." She hadn't dressed specifically for this occasion; it was just something she had randomly picked out of her closet that morning. But no matter what, Leonard always seems to be showering her with compliments.

"You ready to go?"

"Yeah, give me a sec. Let me go get my stuff." She answered before she hurried to her room.

"Alright."

Leonard stood awkwardly at the door awaiting Penny's return and took a glance at what he could see from outside. Her house looked neat, and had a rather "homey" feel about it, at least much more than his. He halted his eyes straight away when he spotted Penny's father looking at him with what he hoped was a little approving nod.

"Good morning sir." Leonard said politely, hoping to give off a good impression.

"Morning, son. What's your name?"

"Um, Le-Leonard." He stumbled a little, nervousness already building up inside him, and was relieved to see Penny return.

"I see you've made yourself a new friend." Penny's father said to her as she slipped her feet into a pair of flats.

"Yeah. I'll see you later Dad." Penny responded as she closed the door behind them.

"I like him." Leonard heard him say before the door was fully shut and he couldn't help but give himself a little smile of accomplishment.

"Are we walking there?" Leonard questioned as soon as they had stepped down from her front porch.

"Yeah. It's not that far."

* * *

The walk to Matt's house had been about fifteen minutes, and they were both starting to perspire a little from the trip in the scorching sun. Leonard had noticed Penny getting slightly agitated by the weather with her constant sighs that came every few minutes.

They had arrived before a house that looked similar to Penny's. It was of average size, and appeared similar to the few houses surrounding it.

"You ready for this?"

"I think so." She sounded unsure and he could hear a note of doubt in her voice, but nevertheless this was something she had to do. "Let's go." She said, this time a little more confident.

Leonard walked by her side, making sure not to fall behind because he wanted to be as supportive as he could, even if it was just by looking like it. She stood in front of the door for a few seconds, before mustering up all her courage to press the doorbell beside the door. She was instantly flooded with nervousness. What was she going to say? She wanted to take off and run home, almost giving in to her paranoia. But she felt a hand on her shoulder, and it was like it sucked all the worry out of her. "It's going to be fine." He reassured her.

The door was opened by a blonde girl of similar age as her. She had a T-shirt wrapped around her and nothing else, showing off her bare legs to complete strangers like it was no big matter. "Yes?" She asked, having no clue as to who these strangers at the doorstep were. But Penny knew exactly who she was. She was the girl in the bathroom stall. The nervousness she had in her was now replaced by anger. Leonard noticed this and replied the girl before Penny would do something rash. "Um, is Matt around?"

"Yeah, I'll go get him."

"That'd be great, thanks." Leonard looked over at Penny and it was as if he could visualise the puffs of smoke coming out of her. Her teeth were clenched and her hands were balling up into fists. He rested his hands again on her shoulder where it had been before and was taken aback when she shrugged it off. He took this to mean that she wanted some space and distanced himself a little from her.

Matt appeared in front of the door a few minutes later and his face turned into one of pretension as he noticed her, leaning himself against one side of the door. "Hey, look who's here." He said in a tone that neither Leonard nor Penny was in favour off.

"Shut up. I want my stuff back." Penny got straight to the point, wanting to get this over with as soon as possible.

"What stuff? I don't have any of your stuff." He denied. "And who's this little guy you've brought, your bodyguard?" He mocked, making no attempt to hide his laughter.

"I know you have my stuff in there." Penny ignored his comment and pushed past him. He hadn't resisted, but went after her when she stepped into the house. Leonard followed closely behind, unsure of what he was supposed to do.

"Hey!" Leonard heard him shout from inside his room where Penny and Matt were in. "Don't touch that!" That was followed closely by the sound of a crash, and more after that. Leonard hurried himself into Matt's room, not even giving a second thought about his privacy. His only concern was of Penny's safety.

"Let go of it!" He saw Matt tugging on Penny's arm, her hands on his laptop ready to throw it across the room any second, which was already in a mess. Leonard's first instinct was to get Matt as far away from Penny as possible. He threw himself at Matt, shoving him at the wall behind him. Leonard was overcome with adrenalin; he would never have been able to do that under any normal circumstances.

Matt wiped his mouth swiftly with the back of his hands. "Little guy's got some nerve, does he?" He was about to thrust his fist into Leonard's jaw, but Penny had managed to knee him from the back between his legs just in time. It probably wouldn't have as much impact as it would if it had been from the front, but Matt collapsed right away and his hands went straight to where he had been hit. He lay on the floor helpless, and Penny gave him a look which Leonard interpreted to say _you deserve it_.

Penny hadn't managed to grab all her belongings in there, but she was far too agitated to care.

* * *

The walk back had been completely silent, Penny not wanting to speak, and Leonard not knowing what he could say to her that wouldn't tick her off. Leonard started to regret proposing the idea to her; it had only made her even more upset than she already was, which was completely opposite to what he had anticipated. They stopped in front of her house when they had arrived, and Leonard was thrown off when she threw her arms around him.

He immediately reciprocated the hug, his hands wrapped protectively around her. He felt her sink into him, but he didn't say a word. He didn't dare to. They stayed like that for about ten seconds, but to Leonard it felt way shorter than that. He wanted to put his arms around her for as long as she needed until she felt happy again, but she had pulled away from him. She shared one last look with him before turning around and made her way to her house without saying a word.

He could only stand there and watch as the distance between them increase; her moving further and further away from him. She had said she wasn't really angry about getting cheated on by Matt, but the compilation of guys cheating on her, and it was finally letting all the emotions free that made her so upset. She had been lying. Who wouldn't be upset if they were cheated on? Even if there was no emotional attachment, there would be at least a little anger amidst all the pretense Trying to cover up what you are really feeling, there was no way that was going to be of any benefit. Penny looked like she was fine, she said she was fine, but she wasn't fine. Not fine at all.


	7. Promises

**First of all, I would really like to thank 5Mississippis and zhalen565, I look forward to both of your reviews every single chapter. :D And to my lovely readers out there, there's no harm in leaving a review, I would love to know what you guys think. :D It will be very much appreciated. Anyway, here's your next chapter.**

Penny hadn't turned up at school the following Monday, or at least he hadn't seen her. Leonard sat all through lunch on the bench thinking she could show up any moment feeling better from their disastrous trip to her ex-boyfriend's house, but he knew that wasn't going to happen. Leonard blamed himself for coming up with the idea. Penny had locked away her past, but he made her revisit it, only to devastate her more than she already is. He thought back to the hug they had shared, how emotional she had been, and how he hadn't wanted to let go. She was in a worst state than when he had first saw her crying her eyes out on those steps. He hadn't seen any tears, but the sadness contained within her eyes killed him.

He furiously slammed his fist down on the bench, feeling like an idiot to have been the source of her sorrow. He was supposed to be there to cheer her up, and not cause more pain to her already broken heart. He had to apologise to her, and make sure she was okay, and if she wasn't he would try to make her feel better. No, he would _have_ to make feel better. Because if he didn't, who would? It was his duty to her, he was her rock, and he swore to himself that from then on, he would always be there for her.

She had become the closest person to him in his life, and he would treasure her and make her feel as if she was the happiest person in the entire universe. No matter how many of her future boyfriends come and go, he will be there. If she needed to cry, he would lend her his shoulder. If she laughed, he would laugh along with her. If she needed a hug, he will always be there with his arms wide open. Whatever she needed, he will provide it to her.

* * *

"Hey there, son." Leonard's father said cheerily as he opened his door to Leonard standing at his front door.

"Hello sir. Is Penny here?" It was a rather silly question, but he was being polite.

"Yeah." He glanced towards the direction of Penny's room. "Although she has been spending an awful amount of time in her room for the past two days."

"I'll try and talk to her."

"Okay, you do that son." He stepped aside to let Leonard in.

It was Leonard's first time being in Penny's house, and he couldn't help but feel a little nervous. He looked around as he made his way to Penny's room. It was a simple and neat home, very much similar to his, but hers made him feel invited and welcome, unlike his own. He had a sense that he was going to spend a lot more time here at her house.

Leonard softly knocked on Penny's door. "Go away." She heard her mumble. He knocked again. "It's me, Leonard." He said hoping to get a more positive response from her. "GO AWAY." Instead he received one with a mixed tone of sadness and anger. "Okay, I'm just going to stay out here until you open the door for me." He didn't receive a response. That only added on to his guilt, he didn't expect Penny to be that upset.

"She won't talk to you, huh?" Leonard heard Penny's father say behind him.

"No." He paused. "But don't worry; I'm sure she will have to come out eventually."

"Alright, if you need anything feel free to ask me."

Leonard gave him a brief nod, and turned his focus back on Penny's door. He placed his bag on the floor and sat down beside her door, leaning against the wall. He took out a book from his bag, and continued from where he left off. He was true to his words; he was going to stay there until Penny comes out, no matter how long it would takes. Even without a book, he would sit there and wait for her, because he had promised himself earlier and he was never one to break a promise.

* * *

When Penny opened her eyes, it stung. She had been an emotional wreck ever since she returned from Matt's house. She looked at the digital clock on her desk; it was a little past midnight. She decided to get a glass of water and wash her face. She stepped out of her room and immediately noticed a figure on the floor beside her. Immediately she made out the figure to be Leonard. His head was hanging down and a book was resting on his lap. He seemed to be in an uncomfortable position but at the same time looked so peaceful. Penny debated whether or not she should wake him up.

But before she could she heard him move, and his head looked up at her. "Hey." He said, his voice slightly hoarse. He cleared his throat and stood up next to her. Through the dim light, he could make out her bloodshot eyes and tear-stained face. "Don't look at me, I look awful right now." She turned her head away from him, hiding herself from his view.

"What are you talking about? You always look beautiful. Including now." He lifted his hand and slightly tilted her face to look at him, giving her the most sincere smile like she deserved.

"Thanks." She looked deep into his eyes, he had meant it. "Um, make yourself comfortable, I'll be right back." She gestured to her room.

Leonard picked up his bag from the floor and stepped into Penny's room, while she turned the other way to the kitchen. He leaned his bag against her desk and looked around her room. He had never been in a girl's room before, and really it wasn't much different from his own. It was simple, like the rest of her house, with a few posters stuck up on the walls. A few items of clothing have been left in the corners, but other than that it was rather tidy.

"Hey, um, I'm sorry about before, for shouting at you." Penny came back with a glass of water in her hands, and her face had been rid of the stains. She set the glass down on her desk and sat on the edge of her bed.

"No, I'm sorry. This wouldn't have happened if not for my stupid idea. I shouldn't have suggested it in the first place. I'm so sorry and-"

"No, Leonard. None of this is your fault." She interrupted him before he could go any further. "I wanted to do this. I'm glad, in fact, that you gave me this idea. It's entirely his fault for being such an ass." She managed a smile, but Leonard could still see the hurt hidden beneath it.

"Yes, but it pains me to see you like this. I promise you, you won't ever feel like this again."

Penny was moved by how concerned he was for her. "Thank you Leonard, I feel better every time I talk to you." She sent him a smile.

"Alright, it's really late; I guess I'll go now." He stated, picking up his bag from the floor.

"Hey Leonard."

"Yeah?" He replied, straightening himself.

"Could you… could you stay here tonight? Just this once?"

"Of course." _I'll stay for as many nights as you want me to, if that's what you want. _"I'll sleep on the floor."

"Um, could you maybe…hold me?" It wasn't something she would ask a friend to do; cuddling was a couple's thing. But Leonard was the only one that she would make that exception, because she knows he would never take advantage of her vulnerability, and the idea of him holding her already made her feel better.

"You sure about that?" Leonard was taken aback by her suggestion, but if that was what she truly needed, he would do it without hesitation.

"Yeah." She unveiled her covers and slid over to the other side, leaving some space for Leonard.

Leonard placed his bag down and moved under the covers with her, his arms closing around her back protectively, hers imitating his actions. He may not be as muscly as the other guys she has laid in bed with, but Leonard's warmth made her feel safe. She has never been more comfortable in her life, and neither has he.


	8. Father's Words

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed! :D I have a rough idea with how I'm going to finish this story when it ends, which would probably answer the questions that were asked. I don't want to spoil anything, so I guess you just have to read on! xD Unless I suddenly get an idea and direct the fic a different way, I'm pretty sure that your questions will be answered. But this fic still has a long way to go, (hopefully) and for now, here's Chapter 8. Enjoy! :)**

Leonard awoken to Penny cradled in his arms, and he was confused for a second, before recalling what had happened a few hours before. She was plastered to his body, her hands hugging his back tightly, as if calling out for protection. He tightened his hold on her, hoping that his warmth would provide her with a sense of security, and that she wouldn't feel alone. He noticed how intimate they were being, resembling a couple, but she hadn't seem to mind, so he put that thought aside.

Even though they had only been cuddling for the entire night and nothing else, it had been extra special for him. It was such a simple gesture, but there was so much meaning behind it. Not only had it been his first time at a girl's house, it was also his first time sharing a bed with someone else. He had agreed to it so quickly, after she had said it was fine with her. He hoped that it had also meant a lot to her, almost as much as it meant to him, or if possible equally as much.

He held her in an embrace for about another ten minutes, each second that passed he cherished. He could just lay there all day with her, but he had to go home to wash up and prepare for school. He slowly and carefully removed himself from her, making sure not to wake her up in the process. She had a calm and peaceful look on her face, and he wanted her to look like that forever. He left her a note on the table, planted a soft kiss on her forehead, and softly said "Goodbye beautiful, I'll see you later." before leaving with a smile on his face.

* * *

Penny rolled over onto her left side and immediately realised that the other side of her bed was empty. She had hoped to wake up to his smile and his hands wrapped protectively around her, but she knew that was too much to ask. It just would have been nice. She laid in bed for another few minutes before rubbing her eyes and sitting up. She caught a piece of yellow note stuck on her table. Picking it up, she recognised that it was his handwriting, even though she had never seen it before. _Sorry, have to head home first. I'll see you in school. P.S You look beautiful in the morning. _He had added a smiley face at the bottom of the note, and signed his name beside it. Penny's face lit up upon reading the final sentence.

She placed the note down and prepared herself for school, for once looking forward to going. She headed out to the dining room where her father was already seated with a newspaper in his hands.

"Did you have a good night?" He asked with a suggestive smile.

"Why do you ask?" She furrowed her brows. She did have a good night, but why would her father ask her that? He never asked anything like that.

He ignored her question, "Leonard was in there with you, wasn't he?" This time his smile widened.

"Wha-What?" She went red immediately, how had he found out about Leonard?

"Oh Wyatt, stop teasing your daughter." Her mother said from the kitchen.

"I saw it." His smile hadn't dropped an inch.

"What?" Penny knew exactly what _it_ was referring to, but she certainly hadn't wanted anyone to find out, her parents included.

"Oh sweetie, stop denying it. I saw it when I woke up to go to the bathroom. Your door wasn't closed entirely, and I just wanted to check if you were okay. But I guess you were better than okay." This time his smile was accompanied by tiny nods, signalling his approval.

She sat there in pure shock, mouth hung slightly opened and eyes not blinking once.

When she hadn't responded, he continued. "Oh come on, you looked cute together. And plus, from what I saw, the way both of you was cuddling, it was like…" He pondered for a moment. "Like you two were puzzle pieces that just fit together."

Penny was still having trouble processing what she had heard from him ever since she sat down. "Dad, you have never talked to me about any guy before. Like ever."

"Well, that's because I like Leonard way better than any of your previous boyfriends."

"Leonard's not my boyfriend!" she exclaimed, her voice a little too high pitched.

"I never said he was. I'm sure he'll make a damn good one though." He paused and lifted his hand to his chin. "I bet he likes you."

She had never considered that. Leonard was her best friend, but did he have feelings for her that he has hidden and not shown her? "No, no. I'm sure Leonard just sees me as a friend." Of course he does. "A really good friend." She emphasised.

"Not from what I have observed. I see the way you two look at each other, it's no normal look."

"He's just a really good friend. The best one that I ever had." She repeated.

"Maybe _you _like him. You just haven't noticed you do."

"Why are you being so persistent on the idea that one of us likes the other?"

"Because you do. And I like him." He flashed her another grin before going back to reading his newspaper.

Penny left the house without eating her breakfast; her father had just put a ton of things in her head that there just wasn't any space for breakfast. As she walked, his suggestion became more and more believable. Was she over-thinking this? Or did she really like Leonard somewhere deep down in her subconscious? And does Leonard really harbour feelings for her? She was left in a state of confusion, and the only way she could think of to pull out of that was to talk to Leonard.

* * *

School moved extremely slowly that day as she waited anxiously for each period to pass so she could get to lunch. She checked her watch every few minutes, which to her felt like hours. As the time drew closer, the possibility of her father's words became more and more believable. She tried to put it aside and focus in class, but every time her mind finds some way to bring it back. By the time the lunch bell went, she was so filled with nerves that it took her several moments to stand up. Immediately she rushed to the one place that she knew he would be.

She burst out the doors to the back, calling out, "Hey Leonard, I need to talk to yo-" She stopped the instant she noticed that he wasn't there. Where was he? He had said in his note that he was going to see her in school that day. She sat herself down and waited for him, but he never came. All she was with the whole of lunch was the unfilled side of the bench.


	9. Feelings

**Sorry, this chapter is a little shorter than the previous few, but I promise I will make up for it. :D And as always, enjoy! **

Growing a little frustrated but concerned at the same time, Penny rolled over on her bed and hit the dial button on her phone for what felt like the hundredth time that day. She was met with the continuous dial tone like she had the previous calls she's made, and like every other time her heart jumped out a little when she heard Leonard's voice. _Hi. It's Leonard. I'm busy at the moment, so leave a message and I will call you back as soon as possible. _She let the phone slip out of her hand and buried her face into her bed. It was unusual for Leonard not to tell her about where he has gone or what he was doing. Then again, it wasn't his duty to report each and every aspect of his daily life to her.

With Leonard gone, Penny felt herself once again start to sink into a state of loneliness and desolation. He was everything that had been holding her up ever since the unfortunate incident at Matt's. Even when this whole emotion fest that she's had had begun, he was the only one that she could rely on. There had been no one else. He had become such an important part of her life without her even noticing. He had only been absent for a day and she felt like a part of her just stopped functioning. She needed him. And she hadn't realised how much until now.

She remembered the previous night when she had asked him into bed with her. But just for him to hold her; nothing else. She had spent the whole night in his arms, never once letting go. It had been one of the best nights she had had in a while. She remembered how soft and tender it had felt; it was like he thought if he were to hug any tighter, she would break, but yet he made her feel safe and protected in his arms.

Her father's words came back to her. _Like you two were puzzle pieces that just fit together._ She had come to realise how true her father's words had been. There had been no awkwardness when they slipped into each other's arms. It just happened. She replayed each and every word that her father had said to her in her head, and each time they became more believable than before. Then she would play out the few times that she and Leonard had spent together, and she would see how kind and gentle he is towards her, and how he seemed to put her in front of everything else. Excluding the first time they've met of course, but now she just thinks that his first personality had been adorable. But when isn't he?

Never had she felt this way towards anyone else before, was she starting to have feelings for him? _Yes. _She slowly admitted to herself. There was no need to talk to him about it anymore; she was sure of her feelings, she just wanted to hear his voice. Maybe he felt the same way too. If he does, then great, maybe she would get the considerate, loving guy that she always wanted. But if he doesn't then that's fine too, these were just feelings. Small, tiny feelings that she felt she could put away and they would probably disappear over time.

There was nothing much she could do at the moment; all she could do was hope, hope for his return, and replay whatever memory she had of his voice inside her head.

* * *

Penny once again sat at the bench all by herself, but this time she gave up and made her way back to the cafeteria where she hadn't been to in a while. Hopefully her friends had been so caught up in their conversations that they hadn't even notice that she was gone, but she thought that was unlikely. It was just what she hoped for.

"Hey Penny, haven't seen you in a while. What have you been doing?" One of the girls Krista said immediately upon her arrival.

_Great. Chit-chat. Just what I need._

"Nothing much." Penny replied.

"Really? Doesn't sound like nothing much from what we've heard." Another of the girls Abby said.

"Besides, the last we saw you were in here and you just took off abruptly." Jillian, the girl next to Abby chimed in.

_Ugh. It's like they are each other's backup singers. They should just go and form a freaking band. _

"Nothing much, I told you."

"Not from what we've heard." Abby repeated. "You and Matt broke up, didn't you?"

_Great. They know._

Jillian took her silence as consent. "He told everyone."

_Of course he did. _

"Have you been hanging out with that little nerd you brought to his house?"

That did it. She crossed the line. Penny felt herself burn up in anger and she knew she was going to regret what she did next, but at that moment, she didn't care.

"OK. JUST SHUT UP. ALL OF YOU. WHAT I DO IS NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS. AND I SHOULD BE ABLE TO DO WHATEVER THE HELL I WANT TO WITHOUT EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU CRITICISING MY EVERY ACTION. ACTUALLY, DO WHATEVER THE HELL YOU WANT. I DON'T EVEN CARE ANYMORE." Her voice rang through the whole cafeteria, and it had become dead silent after the small speech she had given.

She grabbed her bag and stormed out of there as quickly as possible, leaving before anyone could see the tears that were slowly forming in her eyes. She shouldn't have gone to the cafeteria, it was a bad idea.


	10. And Talked They Did

**As promised, to make up for the shortness of the previous chapter, this chapter is slightly longer than the others. Also, I love the reviews that I'm getting. Keep them coming! xD And as usual, enjoy! :D**

As it turns out, Penny regretted what she had done. Not one word about what she had said was wrong, but it was the effect of what she did that was going to come back and hit her square in the face. She knew exactly how everything was going to play out, all the pointing and laughing, the whispers in the halls as she walks past. "Ugh." She groaned and let herself fall back onto her bed. Once again, she had let her emotions get the better of her. But partly it was also because she had been away from Leonard for too long and had fallen into the darkness that was her emotions. Even if it had only been two days since he had disappeared, it was way too long for her. Every second without him felt like minutes, and minutes felt like hours. _Is he ever going to come back? He promised he would be there for me no matter what, didn't he?_ She found herself growing more and more dependent of Leonard as time passed, and his existence had become necessary for her survival. It was like they say; only when you have lost something you would learn how much it means to you. But has she lost Leonard? She didn't know.

It was like she had been thrown into a mess the day she had met Leonard. And the only way to get out of that mess was Leonard himself. Or was there really a way to get out of it? It's not that she didn't like being in a mess, it had spiced her life up by so much more than before. And she would rather have that than live some boring, dull life that revolves around gossips and rumours and what not.

She desperately needed Leonard here with her, only he could tell her what she was supposed to do. How could she possibly set foot in school after having so many pairs of eyes fixed on her when she was throwing a hissy fit in the middle of the school cafeteria? But if Leonard was around, she wouldn't care if people were talking about her, because she didn't give a damn what they think, all that is important is what Leonard thinks of her. She hoped he would retain his opinion of her being beautiful, because whenever he says it, it always sends chills down her spine. Leonard was the only one that could talk to her, and when she's talking to him she didn't care for anything else in the world. Other people could say whatever they want about her, and she could easily swallow it down like it was no big matter. But Leonard was the only one who could see beneath her forced smile and realise how much she is hurting inside.

Right now she was all by herself. There was no way she could face an entire school all by herself. She didn't want to go to school anymore. Not at least until Leonard's return, which she still had absolutely no idea when it was going to happen. She let out another grunt of frustration and clasped her hands to her head. "What have I done?" she hit herself on her head with frustration and slowly moved her hand down to cover her eyes.

The moments of silence she had to herself was soon disrupted by the rapid vibration of her phone on her desk. It didn't go away after one vibration, signalling that it was a call instead of a text. She didn't wanted to speak to anyone at the moment, but quickly came to the realisation that the caller could very well be Leonard. She immediately sat up and felt the rush of blood to her head, but she didn't care. Quickly, she scooped her phone off the table and hit the green button.

"Hello?" She said with more enthusiasm than she could hide.

"Hey Penny. It-"

She ended the instant she heard the voice from the other end. She knew exactly what they were going to say, that they were sorry and didn't mean to upset her but in reality not one word spoken is the truth. She knew them well enough. She has been pretending to be one of them for years. She couldn't care less what they say, what was the point when they were just all talk and no action. Maybe she would consider forgiving them if they were to kneel down in front of her and beg for her forgiveness. But why would they do that? They think they are the queen of everything, and whatever they wanted they'll get. Penny knew she was being overly cruel to them, despite this being in her head, but she couldn't help it. She felt it was what they deserved after years and years of watching them abuse their authority and being mean to the other people in school.

Why couldn't everyone just be equals? Why must there be a hierarchy in school? Why divide people up into groups? If only everyone could be themselves, without getting teased or laughed at. Or better, if everyone were to be like Leonard.

It was a hope she had, but it was never going to happen. There would always be one poor kid being tortured by the bigger one with all the fame and popularity. Nothing is fair, if it were, her life would be so much less complicated than it is now.

Her phone vibrated again, buzzing exactly the same way it did before. She was getting pissed off, hanging up on someone was obviously saying that she didn't want to talk to them, and yet they continue to pester her. She pressed her thumb on the green button with more force than she usually does, as if it could help get out the anger she has building up inside of her.

"Look, I told you I don't want to talk, so just leave me the hell alone." She was close to shouting, and she felt her cheeks starting to burn slightly.

"Penny?"

And it was gone. All her anger she was about to let out, the sorrow that was eating her up inside, everything. Everything disappeared upon hearing his voice, his comforting voice, laced with concern after hearing her outburst. She loved the way he says her name, it was probably the same way everyone else pronounces her name, but to her, it sounded different. It had the ability to calm her, and suck all the negative feelings she has contained out of her. She felt herself already falling for him even more now that she has heard his voice again, but she knew that wasn't her main concern at the moment.

"Penny?" he repeated. "You there?"

"Leonard!" she spoke his name with a little too much excitement, but contained within as a sign of her relief, relief that he was safe, and that he wasn't gone forever.

"Yes, it's me." She could practically hear him smiling over the phone. "What happened to you?"

"Never mind me. What the hell happened to you?" Penny was curious as to what took him so long to call her back, and where he was at the moment.

"We had to leave town. My aunt Grace passed away."

"Oh, I'm so sorry." Penny suddenly felt silly, one of his relatives had passed away, and she was only concerned about herself, and how she needed him without thinking about how he also had his own life and had other concerns that doesn't relate to her.

"Sorry I couldn't call you back until now or at least leave a message. It all happened so suddenly and there was just so much to do. I hadn't checked my phone until now." He explained himself. "You must have been real worried; my call log is filled with your name. Not that I mind, such a beautiful sight."

There it is again. Beautiful. This time he was referring to her name, but somehow it still managed to send chills down throughout her whole body.

"Of course I was!" _I thought you were going to be gone forever._

"I'm sorry. I promised you that I would be there, and a day later I've broken my promise." They were silent for a moment before he continued, "What happened?"

"Matt told everyone what happened. And now people know that we hang out together." She said with a hint of anger as she went through the day's events in her head.

"Oh." His tone of voice changed. "Does it bother you? Does that mean we can't hang out together anymore?"

"What? No!" She exclaimed immediately upon hearing his question.

"Oh okay. So, what did you do?" She thought she heard him let out a sigh of relief, and she couldn't help but smile over that.

"I just lost it. And I shouted at those bitches in front of everyone else. After that, I just left." She paused. "What am I supposed to do, Leonard? Every single person was staring at me. I can't even go to school after this. At least not without you there. When are you going to be back?"

"I'm not going to be back for at least another few days. I hate that I'm so far away from you when you are so vulnerable. Maybe you should just stay home for a few days, tell the school you're sick. I don't think you should be around them for a while. It would just make everything worse, you'll feel worse, and I don't want that."

"Yeah okay." She agreed, slightly nodding even though he couldn't see her.

"Was there anything else you needed to talk about? You know you can talk to me about anything."

_Yeah. I think I'm starting to have feelings for you. Do you feel the same way?_

But she knew this was not something she could talk about over the phone. She needed to see his face when she told him, and he would be honest with how he felt, not that she thought he would lie to her, but seeing him tell her that he also felt the same way in front of him would possibly be the greatest feeling that she was going to get. But she had to talk about this later, now was not the time.

"No, nothing."

"Well then, I guess I'll call you soon?"

"Wait, Leonard. Can we just talk?" She sounded desperate, but she needed to hear his voice. Two days without it was a torture, and she would savour every moment she had with him and his beautiful voice.

And talk they did.

He whispered a "Goodnight, beautiful." before ending the call when her side had gone silent because she had drifted off to sleep.


	11. An Introduction

Penny had stayed cooped up in her room for the past few days with the exception of going to the bathroom and having her meals. Her father had cracked a few jokes to help lighten up her mood, she had laughed, but it wasn't enough. He could be teasing her most of the time, but she couldn't help but feel happy seeing him try so hard to make her feel better. Nevertheless, the one she needed to get through this difficult time has yet to return, even though they had been exchanging long phone calls each day he was still away.

Penny laid on her right side on her bed, hugging her pillow to her body, face slightly buried in it. She was waiting patiently for his call, the only thing that could pull her out of her depressed state. She thought two days without him was miserable, now a week has gone past and she felt many times worse than that. She yearned for his touch, and how warm he felt against her. Or even just a look from him, and how he has the ability to see right through her. Maybe even just having a picture of him to look at. She stuck the reminder in her head that the next time she sees him she has to take a picture with him. And maybe even tell him about how she has been feeling about him.

Soon enough, her phone started to ring and she jumped up from her lying position, sitting up to face the other side. She grabbed her phone off the table and hit the answer button before putting it to her right ear.

"Hey Leonard." She said cheerfully knowing it was him calling at the exact time he did the previous few days.

"Hey. I have good news." He replied with the very same tone she had.

"Oh really? What's that?"

"I'm back."

That was all that was needed to put a smile on her face, actually, his voice already had the ability to do that, but she had been waiting for him to say that phrase for almost an entire week.

"Oh my god! Really?" Her voice sounded close to a squeal.

"Yeah. You wanna come over? I can't go over to your place right now because I'm a little busy. Also, I think I have someone I'd like you to meet."

"Cool. I haven't been to your place, have I? This is going to be fun." She was suppressing the excitement in her voice, but at the same time bouncing slightly up and down while sitting on her bed.

"Alright, I'll see you in a bit?"

"Yeah, I'll be over so fast you wouldn't even realised time has passed." She said, grinning from side to side.

She heard him chuckle softly before saying a "bye" and ending the call. She picked up a small backpack by her desk, stuffing a few things inside of it, and including her camera which she almost forgot.

She rushed out her room and towards the front door, which caught Wyatt's attention. "Going to see Leonard?" He asked, with a huge grin on his face like he always does whenever he talks to her about Leonard. She gave him a smile before hurrying out, letting the door close itself behind her. Judging by how she had reacted, he knew the answer to his question.

* * *

Penny had thought when she arrived at Leonard's she would run up immediately to his doorbell and ring it. But how wrong she was. She didn't know how long she had been standing in front of his house, but she felt her nerves running all over her body. She didn't know why. Was she nervous to see him? Nervous to tell him about her feelings and how he would respond? She knew if she wasn't ready for it she didn't have to do it immediately, but a voice at the back of her head kept pushing her to do so. And even if he had flat out rejected her, she would at least have an answer, and not left wondering whether or not he reciprocated those feelings she had.

She hadn't realised how and when this had all began. If her father hadn't pointed it out, she probably wouldn't even have noticed. Maybe it had been there all along like he said, but she just didn't realise it. _I'm so broken, why would he have feelings for someone like me?_ She doubted herself but quickly stopped when she realised she might be starting to over think things. She was never usually one to over think. That was more of what Leonard does.

He made a good best friend. The best one she could probably get out there. If he were to become her boyfriend, he would be a few hundred thousand times better than all the guys she had been with combined. As a best friend, he was already so kind and caring, and she thought of how it would feel like to have his lips pressed against hers.

She took a few deep breaths and calmed her mind. It was either going to go one way or the other. Yes or no. As simple as that. She walked herself towards his door all the way thinking _It's okay. Everything is going to be okay, this is going to end well._ She breathed out a sigh and pressed her finger on the doorbell. Moments later, he emerged wearing a hoodie and jeans, holding the door open for him.

"Hey. I thought you said you were going to be quick. I guess your definition of quick is different from everyone else." He joked with a smile hanging on his face.

She was about to throw him a hug to welcome him back, but as she was starting to do so a pair of arms went around his neck, and a girl about her age put her head on his shoulder.

"Who's this?" the girl asked innocently, all the time hanging onto Leonard never letting go.

"Oh, this is-Hey!" She had now jumped onto him, clinging on even tighter than she had before.

Penny stood there frozen; her eyes couldn't tear off of the girl being so intimate to Leonard. And here she had thought she was finally going to tell him how she felt. How could she do it now that it looks like he has a girlfriend?

She barely made out a "Sorry, Leonard." before quickly running off, not wanting him to see the tears that were starting to form in her eyes. He had said that he was going to introduce her to someone, and that girl was it, wasn't she? When she had said someone, she had thought it would be a family member, and she would have been glad to meet any one of them, even though Leonard didn't seem to describe them in a good way. Now he has met someone, and Penny didn't know if she could ever tell him how she feels. She ran, as fast as her legs could take her, ignoring the pain radiating from her legs. It hadn't been far from her place to Leonard's, but when she ran back it felt like forever.


	12. Infectious Overthinking

Penny looked towards her left as she walked down the few steps before turning to make her way towards Leonard. He was scrolling through his phone, a smile plastered over his face all the while he was doing so. Penny assumed he must have received messages from his new girlfriend, a pang of jealousy hitting her as she might have been the one doing the same a few days ago. Now that he has a new girlfriend, many things were going to have to change between them. Her girlfriend would ask Penny to stay away from Leonard, and she was once again going to be alone. Never again was she going to be this close to anyone else, and she would once again have to lock up the gate containing her emotions which she had had a hard time opening. She would have to stand by and watch him kiss her, wrap his arms around her and light up at the sight of her when all those things might have been hers if only she had told him sooner.

She sat herself down beside him, leaving more space than usual between them. "What's funny?" She asked upon seeing him laugh a little, instead of greeting him with their usual "Hey".

"Oh, hey. I'm trying to count how many times you called me the other day."

Penny furrowed her brows, why would he be doing that? She thought his new girlfriend would have made him delete all those calls by now. "Hey that's not funny. I was worried that something might have happened to you."

"Well you know what?" He let his hands fall onto his thighs the phone still grasped in his hands, turning his eyes to gaze at her for the first time that day. "If something were to happen to me, I wouldn't want you to know. I wouldn't want you to be there."

Ouch. He had come out and said it so directly. She hadn't even asked him about it yet and he had already rejected her.

"Because," he continued, "Because it kills me to know that I wouldn't be able to be there to wrap my arms around you and comfort you when you are so miserable."

Penny was speechless. He wouldn't want her to hurt even when he was hurting. She didn't know if that was even possible. She didn't care how weird or inappropriate that sounded now that he has a girlfriend, she had to take all she could get from him. And it is these things that he says that are able to warm her heart and make her day.

He noticed the gap between them after a few moments of staring into her beautiful green eyes. He had found himself lost in them, like she had with his. "What are you doing? Move closer." He gestured to the empty space.

She moved over slightly when she heard him but still leaving a little bit of space, making sure not to cross some sort of territory. Even though he was the one who suggested it, it doesn't mean that it was appropriate.

"Oh, come on." He said and moved himself closer so that they were now touching, and he wrapped his right arm around her casually. Penny was still confused, but like earlier, she had to take what she got.

"I didn't see you this morning." He stated, turning his head again to look at her.

"Oh, umm, I was late." She lied. She had in fact been early, to avoid him, and everyone else. She didn't want to talk about what happened the day before, nor was she interested in talking to anyone else. She had sat on the very same spot she was on and just leaned herself against the brick wall behind her, closing her eyes and trying not to think about what had happened. But she knew it was inevitable, he was going to bring it up, sooner or later.

He eyed her suspiciously, but dropped the matter when she looked like she didn't want to talk about it. The last thing he wanted to do was to make her feel uncomfortable. "We're still walking home together yeah?"

"Yeah, of course." She replied.

"Can I ask you something?" Penny didn't know why she was going to ask what she was going to ask.

"Always."

"What does being in love feel like?"

He was taken aback by her question, it had come so suddenly. "Wouldn't you have more experience in that area than I do?"

"No, I don't think I've ever been in love. If I had, I would be far more broken than I am now." _Maybe I am slowly starting to feel what that was like. _

"I don't think you are that broken." He said to her with a smile. "I don't know… I've never been in love as well, but I think I'm starting to." He paused and stared into space still retaining his smile. "I guess… they would be the most amazing thing to you in the world. One second without them, and you would find yourself feeling alone. But when you are with them, nothing else matters. It's just the two of you, and you're lost in your own little world. It's like they complete you, and just fit together."

_Like puzzle pieces_. Her father's words came back to her again, but this time, she wasn't sure if it was to describe them anymore. "She must be really special."

Leonard turned his head once again to look deep into her eyes. With a smile, he said, "She really is."

Leonard's description had described exactly how she felt about him. So does that mean she was in love with him? Does that even matter anymore? It wasn't like there was anything she could do about it.

"So, you want to tell me what happened yesterday?" He asked, slightly raising his eyebrows.

"What?"

"You know…"

"Oh. No…not really."

"Okay then." She thought he was going to push her about the matter, but he didn't. She felt slightly relieved; she hadn't found the words to explain what had happened. There was no way she could say that she is in love with him, when it seems like he was starting to fall in love with someone else.

"If you want to talk about it, you know I'm always available." He said to her with a reassuring smile.

"Yeah." She paused. "Oh that reminds me." She took out her phone and tapped a few things. "You wanna take a picture together? I realised the other day we haven't done that yet."

"Sure." He pulled her closer, leaning her head onto his shoulder while she held the phone out in front of them and snapped the picture.

"Send it to me. I'm going to get it printed and framed." He gave her a grin.

_Yeah, me too._

* * *

When the bell had rung for the end of school, Penny rushed to the back trying to be the first one there only to find out that Leonard was already standing there waiting for her. "How come you are always quicker than I am?"

He smirked, "Maybe you just think you are fast but in actual fact you are very, very slow."

"Oh, shut up." She smacked him lightly on his arm before he put it around her like he had done a few hours ago. She was glad they were behaving the same like they had before, if not more intimate, even though she thought it felt wrong now that he has a girlfriend. And immediately after she had that thought she noticed the girl from the day before standing behind the school gate. She felt a rush of fear hit her instantly.

Leonard had noticed that Penny tensed up and brought her even closer to him. "What the hell are you doing here?" He shouted out at the girl behind the gate, at the same time with a smile on his face.

"I wanted to see your school. And who's that, your girlfriend?" She called out.

Penny thought she saw Leonard blush, but it might have only been her imagination.

"Oh right, I haven't introduced you. This is Penny. And Penny, that's my cousin Claire." He said, pointing at here.

Penny felt like a ton of weight literally got lifted off of her. "What?"

"My cousin Claire." He repeated in an isn't-that-obvious tone.

"Oh right." She looked up at her. "Hi, I'm Penny. Nice to meet you." Penny gave her a little wave.

"It's nice to meet you too." She replied, waving back.

Penny might have looked like she was calm on the outside, but after she had heard 'cousin', a million thoughts raced in and out of her head. She had been over thinking everything, maybe it was because she had been around Leonard, and she had caught on to his behaviour. It was infectious. _So infectious._


	13. Weirded Out

**Okay, this chapter might be a little weird, but I promise, there's a reason behind it. **

"She can be really crazy sometimes; don't believe everything she tells you." Leonard said to Penny his arm still draped around her, while Claire ran up to them and grabbed Leonard's other free arm. Even though she was his cousin, Penny couldn't help but feel a little jealous when Claire touched him. She knew she was being selfish, but she always thought of Leonard as being hers and hers only, and since she had known about her feelings for him, she became even more possessive of Leonard without realising it. She slid her arm around his back, slightly drawing him closer to her while leaning onto him. If it was just the two of them, they could have been easily mistaken as a couple.

"How's school?" Claire asked.

"Well, I have this one to keep me company, so can't complain." Leonard answered, nodding towards Penny.

"I could say the same about you." Penny smiled, looking towards him. "Hey, can I come over? I still haven't had a look inside your house."

"There's nothing much to look at. I like yours way better, but if you want to come, I can't stop you. Not that I want to."

"Okay." Penny nodded, drifting into her own thoughts and let Leonard and Claire chatter on about whatever they were chattering about. Leonard's words never left her mind, his description of love, and even that look that he gave her. It was a look of someone very much in love. If it wasn't Claire, who else could it be? Was he talking about her? He could have professed his love for her and she didn't even realise. But there was no guarantee that there isn't someone else. As selfish as she thought she was, there was no stopping Leonard from meeting other girls. Then again, he doesn't strike her as the type to go out and socialise with others. Her mind was juggling all her thoughts, and she had no idea which was right or which was wrong, or if they were all wrong.

Maybe it was finally time for her to tell Leonard about how she felt, before something got in the way again.

It wasn't long before she was once again standing on Leonard's front porch, feeling a little disappointed she had to remove herself from him because he had to get his keys out of his backpack. He turned the lock and stepped inside, flickered the lights on and hung his keys on a little hook on the wall. He held the door open for them to step in, and the first thing that Penny noticed was a cabinet full of medals and trophies.

"Wow. Did you win all of that?" Penny asked with admiration.

"No, they are mostly my sister's and my brother's, mine is just the bottom shelf."

"That's still a lot." Penny said, lifting her finger to count the number of trophies on his shelf.

Leonard felt slightly embarrassed and had put on a shade of red. "Come on, I'll show you my room." He said, his hands going around her and guiding her towards the other direction.

Penny noticed him looking redder than usual and laughed. "You should be proud, not embarrassed." She teased him.

Penny expected his room to look nerdier than it was, other than a few posters of superheroes and small figurines sitting on his desk, the rest of the room looked normal. "I'll go grab some water and some stuff for you to eat." He said, putting his bag down and leaving the room.

"Alright, thanks." Penny shouted out.

"Okay, you need to back off." This time it was Claire who spoke.

"What?" Penny was confused by her change in attitude.

"Back off. Leonard is mine." She repeated.

Penny had never been more confused. "We're just friends…"

"Don't give me that excuse. You think I can't see the way you look at him? Or how he looks at you? That's no normal look."

That sounded familiar. "We are just really close friends." She used the very same response she had given, though this time she wasn't really denying it.

"Oh please, both of your pupils dilate when you look at each other. Don't tell me that's not an expression of love."

"What? He's not-I'm not in love with Leonard!" She exclaimed, but not loud enough for Leonard to hear.

"Well, I sure hope so. I have known him so much longer than you, and I can swear that I won't ever hurt him! I can give him happiness, and everything he deserves? Can you? Can you swear that you will never cause him any sort of unhappiness? Because I can!"

"But you're his cousin… Isn't that like incest or something?" She wasn't denying her love for Leonard, but she sure found what was happening very strange.

"When it comes to love, nothing else matters!" She looked like she was about to give a full speech but Leonard stepped in and her expression softened, changing back to a smile. "Hey Leonard." She said softly.

"What are you girls talking about?"

"Oh, you know. Just chatting. Girl stuff." Claire replied.

* * *

That evening she spent was the weirdest one she ever had. Claire stuck herself to Leonard, and just looking at it made Penny feel very uncomfortable. She kept a reasonable distance between herself and Leonard, but not too much that he would think she was distancing herself from him. It had gone dark outside and she decided to head home, at the same time not wanting to witness any more of the weird stuff that has been going on.

"I think I'm gonna head home." Penny said, lifting her bag onto her shoulder.

"I'll walk you." Leonard said, being the gentleman he was.

"Oh, that's okay." Penny said, looking over at Claire who seemed to be glaring at her.

"No, it's dark. You can't walk alone. Claire, I'll talk to you later."

To her surprise, Claire replied with an "okay" and walked out of the room.

"What's up with your cousin?" Penny questioned once they were several meters away from Leonard's house.

"She's a little weird, isn't she? We grew up together, and Claire was the one I was closest to. That's why she gets really protective of me sometimes, but other times she gets really clingy."

"Yeah, I realise." Penny said with a laugh. "How come you've never talked about her before?"

"I actually haven't talked to her in ages. Her mom was the one who passed away, and her dad has to go overseas for a few months for some work thing, so she's staying with us temporarily. She might look really lively on the outside, but I can tell she's hurting. Of course she is, her mom just died, but she hides her emotions inside. She's kinda like you actually."

Penny didn't know whether to take that as an insult or a compliment, but Leonard had no clue of her and Claire's conversation, and it was something she wouldn't want him to know. She wondered if he knew of how Claire felt about him. All Penny managed was a little laugh in response to his comment. The rest of the walk had been silent, not an awkward one, but a comfortable one.

"Alright. Here we are." Leonard said, as they stopped in front of her house.

Penny leaned forward and gave him a brief hug. He put her arms around her and gave her a little peck on her cheek.

"I'll see you." He said once he had let go.

"Okay, see ya." Penny responded, giving him a little wave and headed towards her door. Once again, she was locked in a state of confusion, and this time it was Claire's voice that stuck to her head. _Can you swear that you will never cause him any sort of unhappiness?_ Not once had that crossed her mind.


	14. Congratulations

**New chapter! :D I found myself thoroughly amused by the comments left in the reviews about Claire. Because, well... you'll find out! ;D **

It was the weekends again, and Penny hadn't noticed how fast time has gone with all that has been going through her mind. Leonard's cousin Claire especially, what Claire had told her the day before was bothering her a little. In fact, a little is a bit too much of an understatement. When she hears Claire's voice in her head, she would start to get goose bumps forming on her arms, and they were still in the summer. Sometimes she would involuntarily shiver from the thought. Never had she known or seen someone that…insane and twisted. Penny wouldn't even want to consider the thought that she might be a potential love rival. Yet, once again, she found herself in front of Leonard's front door, knocking on it this time instead of pressing the doorbell on the side.

Claire appeared a few seconds later, a joyful look on her face. But upon seeing Penny, her face dropped and instantly turned cold, obviously looking annoyed.

"What are you doing here? Don't you have to go to school?" She questioned with rudeness etched into her voice.

" Umm…it's Saturday." Penny replied, trying to ignore her attitude.

"What do you want? Leonard's not here." Claire stated, and Penny thought she might have seen her rolling her eyes slightly.

"Umm actually…I want to talk to you."

Claire lifted one of her eyebrows.

"Have you…" This was difficult for Penny to do. "Have you ever told Leonard about how you feel?"

"What?" Claire looked at her, her expression now of shock. "What? No. No, of course not." Her eyes were now looking away, everywhere else except at Penny.

"Why not?"

"It's just not something I can say to him easily. Who knows what will happen? What if he stops talking to me?" Claire started rambling.

"You should." Penny smiled at her, even though it hurt that she was telling someone else to admit their feelings to Leonard, when she still cannot bring herself to do it.

Claire's expression turned quickly from worry to a smile. However, it was more of a smile of approval, rather than one of joy. Penny was completely lost in the situation; Claire seemed to have turned into a completely different person.

"What?" Penny asked, confusion written all over her face.

"Congratulations. Come here." Claire spread her arms out, inviting Penny in for a hug.

"Okay…" Penny stepped forward and hugged her, patting her back a few times.

"Congratulations for…?" Penny questioned when she stepped back.

"Passing my test. If you had told me to back off because Leonard is yours, or did something bitchy that usually girls will do, I wouldn't have approved of you as Leonard's mate."

Penny's face went red instantly. "Mate? Wha-No, we're no-"

"Oh, look at you all embarrassed. You are so cute, I like you even more." Claire gave off a laugh seeing as Penny still looked befuddled. "Come in, let's talk." She headed towards the living room leaving the door open for Penny to come in. Penny stood rooted to the ground for a few seconds before she realised Claire had just invited her in. She closed the door behind her and followed quickly behind Claire.

Claire slumped onto the sofa, and Penny sat down next to her, not knowing where else to sit.

"I still don't…"

"The whole thing was an act, Penny. It was to determine if you would be suitable for Leonard."

"Suitable?" Penny asked, pretending to be unaware of what she was talking about.

"Don't deny it. I know. Anyone can tell just by looking at the two of you."

"So the whole thing with you being in love with Leonard was an act?" Penny asked, trying to catch up with Claire's thoughts.

"Yeah, pretty good, aren't I?" She said beaming at Penny. "Plus, I have a boyfriend."

"Oh. I should have caught that." Penny said, looking away.

"Okay, let's get down to business."

"Umm…okay."

"It's obvious that the two of you feel something for each other."

Claire hadn't finished before Penny cut her off. "It-it is?"

"Yeah of course. Perhaps not to him, or to you. Man, I swear you two are such idiots. Have you said anything to him about it?"

"No…what if he doesn't feel the same way?" Penny asked.

"I just told you it's obvious the two of you feel something for each other." Claire paused and looked at her. "You know what I've been listening to the past week? It was the first time we have seen each other in a long time, and all he would talk about was you. I've never seen him talk about anyone else with so much passion and excitement. I didn't have to come here you know? I could have just stayed at home by myself, and I would have been fine. But I wanted to meet you, and know what is it about you that he is so fascinated about."

"Really?" was all Penny could get out.

"Yeah. Next time, observe how he looks at you. His face just lights up instantly."

"Alright…I'm still not sure about this though. The other day, you asked me, whether I can swear that I will never cause him any sort of unhappiness. I know that I don't want to, but even if I don't, some things are not really in my control. What if, I somehow do manage to hurt him? That is the last thing that I would want to do. If we are already happy enough as best friends, why not just keep it at that and not risk anything?"

"Listen to how you are talking about him. Do you not think that he is not worth the risk?"

"No…I'm not saying that. It's just…" Penny struggled to get her words out.

"Some things are worth taking the risk, Penny. Where else are you going to find someone as perfect for you as Leonard? Think about how much you will regret if you don't take this chance with him. Do you really want that? I'm sure you know this by now, but Leonard would make a hell of a boyfriend. Even though this will be his first time."

Penny started to say something, but Claire stopped her before she could. "Take your own advice Penny, you should."

Many times she's had her own words thrown back at her, but this was the first time that it might help in her current situation. "Alright, I'll do it." Penny stated firmly.

Claire gave her a smile, "You guys are going to be great together." She still found Claire strange to be so excited for someone else's relationship, although it was a different kind of strange from the previous day.

At that moment she heard the key turn the lock in the door, and Leonard stepped in with a few bags in his hand. He saw Claire first, smiled at her and greeted her with a casual "hey". Then, his eyes drifted towards her, and Penny immediately noticed what Claire was talking about, she saw his face light up the instant his eyes met hers, and he couldn't wipe the grin off his face.

"What are you doing here?" He asked, still smiling at her.

"Just hanging with Claire here." _Hanging?_

"Hanging?" His voice echoed her thoughts, and he gave a little laugh.

She smiled back at him and looked towards Claire. "Did you see it?"

"See what?" Leonard asked, clueless of the situation.

"Yeah. Yeah I did." Penny grinned, nodding at the same time at Claire.

"So…"

"Yeah, I'll do it. Soon." Claire seemed to be slightly annoyed at the word she had added to the end of the sentence, but she knew Penny needed time to prepare, and this was neither the right time nor place to do it.

"What?" Leonard was looking as clueless as Penny did before, looking from Claire to Penny, and then from Penny to Claire.

"Nothing." Penny said, pulling him down to sit beside her.

She wanted to pull him closer towards her and just press her lips on his, getting more and more curious as to what it tastes like, but she knew she had to hold it in. _Just a little longer. Soon, you might be able to do that. Soon._


	15. Disneyland

**Since the story had been mostly written in Penny's POV, I decided to write this in more of Leonard's POV. And as always, huge thank you to everyone reading/reviewing. Sorry this chapter came a little late. :S**

"Hey Leonard!" Claire called out immediately after she had burst into Leonard's room.

Leonard rolled over onto his other side to face the direction of her voice, blinking a few times before half opening his eyes. Claire, on the other hand, was full of energy and looked like she was ready for a day's outing.

"What's up Claire?" Leonard responded putting a hand on his bed to support himself while he sat up.

"Go get ready, we're going to Disneyland!" She exclaimed.

"Right now?" He asked, as he reached for his glasses and put it over his eyes.

"Yeah, come on, let's go." She clapped her hands together twice. "Chop-chop."

"I don't know if I want to go out today Claire. I was up last night doing my homework, and I still feel pretty tired right now, I just want to go to sleep."

"Strange. Penny said the same thing." She said, with a hint of a smile.

Leonard suddenly looked more awake than he was a few seconds ago. "Penny's going?"

"Very strange. I got the exact same response from her."

"So she's going?" Leonard repeated.

"Yeah, I already bought three tickets."

"Since when?"

"Like an hour ago."

"Does it ever occur to you that I might be busy?"

"Well you're not, are you?" She stated, smiling at the same time.

Before Leonard could respond, the doorbell sounded throughout the house. "Ooh! That must be Penny!" Claire said excitedly before bolting to the door.

Leonard quickly changed into the clothes he had hung on his door, and then left his room to go out and greet a surprisingly tired Penny. "You okay?" he asked with concern.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just didn't get much sleep last night." She replied, in a rather monotonous tone.

"You don't have to go if you don't want to."

"Nah, it's okay. I'll be fine. Too many things on my mind, this will probably help shake it off."

"Okay then, can I drive? You two can sit in the back and do whatever you want to do, I won't disturb." She said, failing to hide the smirk on her face.

"Yeah okay, let me just go grab a few things." He said, heading towards his room.

"Wow, there're so many people. Thank goodness I bought the tickets online, I mean, look at that line." She said pointing towards the pack of people in front of the ticket counters.

"It _is_ the weekend after all."

It didn't take long for them to enter and Claire looked more excited than anything else. Leonard and Penny on the other hand, looked like they were drained of energy, but trying their best to look as enthusiastic as she were for her.

"Ooh, let's go on that first!" Claire pointed towards the roller coaster that was visible from the entrance.

"Good idea." Penny agreed. "We wouldn't want to end up throwing up all we ate if we went on that after lunch."

"Or we could just not go on it at all." Leonard said, already looking a little afraid.

"Oh come on, Leonard, it'll be fun." Claire said, dragging him with her regardless of his resistance.

"I'm going to wet myself." Leonard muttered under his breath. Penny laughed softly upon hearing his comment.

It took them about 45 minutes to get onto the ride, but according to Claire, it was all worth it because of "how awesome the ride had been". Leonard had sat in the middle of the two girls, almost going deaf due to not just their screams of exhilaration, but everyone else around him. It didn't bother him though, because Penny looked more alive after that first ride.

Leonard was having trouble breathing by the end of the ride, and Penny was now softly stroking him on the back while handing him a bottle of water for him to drink. He calmed down after a few minutes, swearing that he was not going on any more rides like that for the rest of the day.

They went on a few more before they had lunch, although those weren't as thrilling as the first one had been. "Hey, let's go in there." Claire suggested, pointing towards the haunted mansion as they were leaving the restaurant.

This time, however, it was both Leonard and Penny who were vigorously shaking their head, saying "No way" and "No, no, no" at the same time.

"Come on, it'll be fun."

"That's what you said about the first ride." Leonard replied, staring at Claire.

Claire ignored him and dragged them both towards the mansion. Just looking at the exterior of it already started giving him the creeps. Claire was looking excited like she was for every single attraction they've been at, whereas Leonard and Penny were scared out of their wits.

"Let's go, you pus-" She joked before they entered, but Leonard gave her a glare before she could finish her sentence.

Leonard was already holding Penny's hand in the dark, before anything had come out to "attack" them. Penny screamed, this time not of exhilaration but of fear when she heard something breathe an evil laugh on her neck. Before she could recover, a face appeared in front of them, and she let out another scream. The background music in the mansion wasn't really helping either, but it wasn't designed to. The only other thing she saw in the mansion was a figure slowly rising from inside a coffin, and after that, she just buried her face in Leonard's chest, both hands going around his waist for the rest of the "tour". Leonard was as scared as she was, but one of them had to keep their eyes open to see where they were going.

"I'm going to kill you for doing that to us." Leonard turned towards Claire who apparently had a great time in there. She just smiled back at him. Penny still clung onto him, refusing to let go. Leonard planted a soft kiss on the side of her head, and whispered to her, "Hey. It's okay now."

He passed his backpack to Claire, "Here, hold this. I need to use the restroom."

He and Penny both reluctantly removed themselves from each other, and he walked off in the direction of the restroom while Claire and Penny sat themselves down on a nearby empty bench.

"So, are you going to tell him?" Claire mentioned.

"What? Today?" She responded, her shock not going unnoticed in her voice.

"Then when else can you do it? This is the perfect place and day to do it. I mean, you could do it after the fireworks, and then the two of you would kiss…" She said rather dreamily.

"Yeah, I mean all that's great. But I think it'd be better if I were to do it in school."

"In school? What's so special about that?"

"Well, it's special to me…"

"Aw really? Then I organised this for nothing?"

"Wha-Did you want us to come so I would tell him?" Penny looked towards her.

"Yeah, I thought it would make it pretty magical. Oh well, you do your thing, but as long as you tell him, I'm fine."

"Can I ask you something?" Penny questioned, looking back down to the ground again.

"Sure, what's up?"

"Why do you seem to have this…obsession going on about the two of us?"

"I care about Leonard. And he's never going find a girl as great as you are." Claire flashed a smile in her direction.

"I thought it was the other way around."

"I think it's both ways. You are both very lucky to have found each other." She said, before smiling at Leonard who was now walking back towards them.

Penny's head was leaned onto Leonard's shoulder throughout the fireworks display. Leonard had found her asleep despite the amount of noise in their surroundings.

"She's tired." Claire stated, still smiling, like she was whenever she saw the two of them being intimate.

"Yeah." He paused and studied her face. "She's so beautiful when she sleeps."

When she didn't answer, he continued, "She's so beautiful like…all the time."

Leonard let Penny lay there on his shoulder for a couple of minutes, before gently shaking her to wake her up and tell her they were leaving. He stood up before putting out his hand to help her up, his hands going around her waist to support her. Her head went back onto his shoulder, and she just leaned onto him until she got home.

**I've actually never been to Disneyland in California before, so everything in here was based on a little bit of research and just what I think it looks like. **


	16. Operation Success

**Sorry this is so late! I've had to get a lot of work done and I actually thought of posting this tomorrow, but I couldn't disappoint you guys! Anyway, I hope this chapter is worth the wait. I think you guys are really going to enjoy it. ;D**

Penny approached Leonard with a smile, greeting him like she usually does. On the outside she may look calm and relaxed, but in actual fact she was trying to suppress the nerves that were determined to escape from her. She was finally going to do it; she was going to tell Leonard how she feels. She has held it off long enough, and Claire's voice was now always there to push her into doing so. After Claire had put in so much effort in getting her to do so in Disneyland, and Penny had disappointed her, she wouldn't want to drag this matter any longer. However, she wasn't doing it for Claire alone; she was doing this for herself, and most importantly for Leonard. Claire had made her so sure that he would tell her what she would want to hear, and this operation is definitely going to be a success. All she had to do was to push start.

Like always, Leonard was able to sense when she isn't feeling quite right. He placed a hand on her shoulder and softly asked, "You okay? Still horrified from that experience yesterday?"

"Oh, that. Yeah, a little bit. I had trouble trying to get to sleep yesterday." _Okay. This is good. Start with a casual conversation, and then maybe slowly lead into it. _

"I swear I am going to kill Claire for that." He sounded rather serious.

Penny gave a small chuckle. _Well, I hope you will thank her for what's coming. _

"Yeah, you said that yesterday."

"Well, did you at least have a good sleep? However long it was?" He questioned, in his kind and tender voice.

"Yeah, it was alright." _How can I not have a good sleep when you appear in my dreams? _

"What's that smile?" He didn't miss her slight grin, whereas most people might have.

"Nothing." She replied sheepishly.

"Well, I don't know if this would be of any help, but I couldn't go to sleep either, with those images from the mansion repeatedly appearing in my head and all." He admitted.

_Maybe he was thinking about me as well._

"Yeah." She chuckled again. "You did see much more than I did."

She heard him laugh briefly as well, and there was a moment of silence between them. She turned her head to face him, at the same time that his eyes fell on hers. They gazed at each other for several moments, and Penny swore she felt electricity pass between them. And when he put on that charming smile accompanied by his comforting brown eyes, it was what she felt was the signal for her to start confessing, before they ran out of time.

"Leonard?" She started, not taking her eyes off hers.

"Yeah?" His tone sounded similar to hers.

"Um… I have something I need to tell you." She continued.

"Oh, is something wrong?" He asked, his protective self immediately taking over.

"No, no. Nothing's wrong. It's just something I have- want to say."

"Oh, okay. What's that?"

"Do you remember that night, when you came back? And I went over to your place, but ended up running away instead?" It was a silly question, of course he would have remembered, but she needed somewhere to start the story.

"Yeah, of course. You want to talk about it now?"

Penny nodded.

Penny decided she should just come out and say it directly. There was no point in including any other information, and she might confuse him even though he is such a genius, because she knew he wasn't really experienced in this area. "Um…the reason," His face encouraged her to go on. "The reason that I ran was because of Claire."

"Did she do something to you?" He asked, immediately becoming protective again.

"No, wait. I'm not finished."

"Oh, okay. Sorry. Go on."

"It wasn't her fault. It was me, I misunderstood. When I saw her wrap her arms around your neck, I thought she was your new girlfriend." He looked more confused than he ever had. "I got jealous, and that's why I ran away." He didn't look less puzzled than before. "I have feelings for you, Leonard."

Then she saw recognition wash over his face, but he didn't say a word. Penny thought that when she got the words out, she would feel much better. But in fact, she felt even more nervous than before. It wasn't the confessing that was difficult, it was actually waiting for his response that was killing her. She had been so sure that he would feel the same way, but now that he is not speaking a word it was scaring her. She was almost going to launch herself into a state of embarrassment when Leonard cupped his right hand to her right cheek.

What was he going to say? The cliché _you know how I feel about you but this will never work_, or a simple one word _really?_ Or perhaps a smile and a _I have feelings for you too._ Many scenarios played out in her heads just in a few seconds, each resembling what he was going to say.

But he said nothing. He simply brought himself closer to her and pressed his lips towards hers. It was so soft and tender, but at the same time Penny thought she felt longing in that kiss. Like this was something he had meant to do a long time ago. Penny wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer than he already was, further deepening their kiss. It _was_ their first one after all, and she of course wanted it to be special.

She didn't know how long it lasted, but when he broke the kiss, she instantly longed for him again. He placed a small peck on her lips before moving back to look at her, her arms all the while on his neck.

"You're good. First time?" Penny teased him.

"Yeah." He replied, and she thought she saw him blush. "How long has it been since you realised?"

"Um…remembered the night we cuddled?" She asked, unable to wipe her satisfied expression off her face.

"Of course." He replied, very much in the same way.

"My dad saw it."

"What?" He instantly panicked.

Penny gave a small laugh. "No, it's a good thing. He told me that he thinks you might have feelings for me, and perhaps maybe I do too deep down inside and didn't realise it. Well they eventually grew over time, and I've wanted to tell you but there was never a right time. I was actually going to tell you on the day you came back."

"Well, for one, your dad was right." He smiled, and continued. "And I cannot stress this enough, I blame Claire for everything."

"You should thank her, actually. She pushed me to do this."

"She knew?" He said, almost shouting.

"Yeah. You know all that Disneyland stuff? She planned it all, and she wanted me to do it there because she thought it would be magical and stuff." She said, now leaning herself onto Leonard while his arms went around her.

"Aww, well I guess I can't blame her now." He replied, mocking sadness. "How come you didn't do it there?"

"Because I thought it would be more special to do it here. Everything that happened started here; to me, it's more special than doing it at a theme park."

"Yeah, I get what you mean." He agreed, slightly nodding.

"So, when did you know about your feelings?"

"I don't want to tell, it's embarrassing."

"Oh, come on. I told you mine." She pleaded.

"I'll tell you someday. But not now."

She faked a sad face.

"Aw, honey, don't be sad. I promise you will be ten times as happy when I tell you."

"Okay, fine." She pouted, but at the same time feeling too excited that he had just called her 'honey'.

He placed another kiss on her lips, followed by saying, "Okay, did that fix it?"

He didn't need her answer, he could tell straightaway by the huge smile fixed on her face.


	17. Third Wheel

A cheeky grin hung on his face as he stood patiently to wait for her to appear at that door any moment. The faint noise from the front of the school was gradually increasing, meaning she should be here any moment. On many occasions, Leonard had dreamt of this happening, but never did he know that it was going to come true. Now it has, and Leonard simply cannot think of any other moment in his life he had felt as content as he is now. He had always thought that he would be the one to profess, but the fact that Penny had been the one to do it just makes it a million times better. He had in fact planned to do it in Disneyland like Claire had intended, although not for him, but she had been so worn out and terrified after that experience in the haunted mansion that he decided against it. All this time she felt the same way and he hadn't realise. The same goes for her, but Leonard was better at hiding his emotions than she was, and he didn't expect her to pick up on it. She had dropped several hints, and it should have been obvious to him that her feelings towards him were different to when they had first met, but he hadn't caught on that.

Leonard knew that in the distant future he was going to regret losing all those days that they could have been a couple if only they had poured their heart out sooner. Hell, he already regretted it a little now. But right now all that matters to him was that they were together, and he could worry about all the other things later.

The door creaked a little as she walked out, and she hurried down the steps, skipping the last one.

"Hey." She put on a dreamy look, not much different from the one he had.

"Hi angel." He replied sweetly.

"Okay, how many more names do you have for me because I don't know if I will be able to survive being called that many sweet names by you." She questioned, beaming at him.

"Heaps." Leonard answered as his hands went on her lower back, but she pushed him away. She read the confusion on his face and nodded towards the gate, and realisation hit him.

"Why is she here again?" It was rhetorical, he knew very well what Claire wanted to know, but she didn't know that he knew, and the mischievous grin across Penny's face told him everything he needed to know.

"Let's screw with her a bit." She stated, even though he already knew.

"Hey buddies! How's your day?" Claire spoke in an overly excited tone.

"Buddies?" Leonard raised an eyebrow at her.

"It was alright." Penny said after a laugh.

"Just alright?" Claire's face dropped. "Nothing…interesting or big or spectacular happened?"

"No, not really." Leonard was trying his best to keep a straight face; he looked away, so Claire couldn't see the slight grin that was forming on his face.

"Penny?"

"What?"

"You didn't tell him? I thought you said you were going to tell him!"

"Tell me what?" Leonard faked innocence.

"Penny!" Claire nudged her slightly on her arm.

"Ow!"

"Hey!" Leonard slid his arms around Penny and softly rubbed the spot where she had been hit. "You can't treat my girlfriend like that!"

Both Penny and Leonard burst out in laughter as they comprehended the expression on Claire's face. Penny dropped her head onto Leonard's shoulder; Claire's mouth now hung wide open, trying to say something but no words came out of her mouth.

"Oh my god!" She squealed, her voice ringing in their ears. "You told him?" She was looking at Penny.

Penny gave her a slight nod, and after a few moments her face lit up and she said, "I told you!"

"Thanks Claire." They both answered in unison.

"Oh my god, Leonard, you have to kiss her." Claire was flailing her arms around.

"I already did." Leonard replied coolly.

"Do it again." She commanded.

"I'm not going to do it under your command."

"Kiss her!"

"You are enjoying being the third wheel, aren't you?"

"Yes I am, now do it! I wanna see!"

"No!"

But Penny's arms went around his neck as she planted a kiss on his lips. Instantly they got lost in each other and only when they heard Claire's high pitched squeal did they stop. They looked towards her and she was clapping her hands together in a very quick motion, a huge smile plastered on her face.

"Seriously, what is wrong with you?"

Claire just gave a snicker.

* * *

"Mitzy!" Leonard called out once his house came into view.

"Mitzy? You have a secret girlfriend you didn't tell me about?" Penny joked.

"Uh-sort of."

"Wha-Oh my god you have a dog?" Penny sounded almost as high pitched as Claire had been when she noticed.

Mitzy jumped onto Leonard the instant she noticed him, throwing Leonard back a little. He sat himself down on his front lawn and Penny followed suit, stroking the dog like he was.

"Well, I'll leave you two lovebirds alone." Claire said, making her way to the door.

"How come you never told me you had a dog?" Penny glanced at Leonard.

"Well, Mitzy just wanders off and sometimes I forget about her. I feel so bad though. But she always comes back every few days."

"I always wanted a dog, but my brother is allergic, so I could never get one." Penny's face now held a slightly sad expression.

"Well, I guess you have one now." He smiled at her, "Look, she likes you already." Mitzy was licking the right side of Penny's face.

"Aw, really?"

Leonard responded with a nod. Penny was concentrated on Mitzy, her beautiful smile never leaving her face. She was happy, and this is the expression he wants to see on her all the time. He was able to make her happy, and he wanted that to go on for a very long time, possibly forever. It wasn't arrogance, but he felt that no other man would be able to make her as happy as he can, there might be, but he refused to believe so, and he knew for sure that she would agree with him. She was happiest when he's with her, and he was happiest when she's with him. Maybe from another's perspective they might just seem like two different people from two different worlds, but what did they know? Leonard and Penny understood each other best, and one needed the other in order to function. He remembered her words from the past, "Some chicks dig nerds!" and now he can't help but chuckle at how true her words were.

Penny noticed Leonard laugh a little and she wondered what it was that amused him. She gave him a questioning look.

"What?"

"What's so funny?" She asked, still stroking Mitzy.

"Nothing." She knew it was something, probably something about her, but she shook it off. She gave Leonard one last grin before turning her attention back to Mitzy.


	18. Intimate Position

Instead of sitting beside him like she usually did, Penny's back was pressed as close as it can be to Leonard's chest, her head leaning on his, herself settled on Leonard's lap. It was what they deduced as their "intimate position", despite how close they had been before becoming a couple; they hadn't thought that they could get any closer, but it appears now that they were wrong about that. In fact, their sitting position had been one of the many topics that had been discussed over their phone call after Leonard had dropped Penny off at her place, leaving after giving her a soft kiss on her lips. Surprisingly, they had engaged in a conversation about where each of their body parts are going to be placed- her leaning on his chest, his arms wrapped around her waist, her sitting on his lap, and his face buried every so often in her hair, taking in her scent. They shared a laugh by the end of that conversation, having no idea why they had spent half an hour talking about their positions, but they didn't mind, because anything that they might talk about, as long as they could hear the other person's voice, it was enough.

Penny was smiling the entire time she was talking to him, even though she couldn't see his face, that her cheeks were still a little sore the following morning. She had never heard such sweet words from a boy that made her get gushes of emotion with every word he said. She had no idea, but Leonard was doing exactly the same thing, his smile never torn off his face, listening intently to every word she had to say. They talked till they fell asleep, or at least until she fell asleep, and there was no better way to fall asleep than with him, even if they weren't physically together.

"Are you sure you are comfortable sitting like that?" Leonard tilted his head slightly to look at her.

"I should be the one asking you that question. You are like a human cushion." She said cheekily.

"Oh, I'm fine. I'd be in heaven if I could be this close to you all the time."

Again, Penny couldn't help but light up at the way he spoke about her. "You sure?" She asked. "I feel like I'm putting all my weight on you."

"Yeah, you're not that heavy anyway. Plus, I'm strong." He joked.

"Oh really?" She grinned at him. "Next time, carry me and run for 15 minutes- actually, try walking instead."

"I'm sure that will happen soon enough." He pulled her closer than she already was. "Hey, do you want to go out on Saturday?"

"Leonard Hofstader, are you inviting me on our first date?"

" Isn't it obvious?"

"Then, yes, I would love to go out on Saturday."

"What if it wasn't a date?" Leonard raised an eyebrow, even though she couldn't see it.

"Of course I would still have said yes. Even if you didn't invite me out, I would probably just invite myself over to your place." She turned back partially to look at him.

"For Mitzy?" he asked teasingly.

"Partly." She turned back to lean on him. "But mostly for my asthmatic boyfriend who I don't think can carry me for 15 minutes, so I have to walk there myself."

Leonard gave out a soft laugh. "You don't need to spend so much time picking your clothes and try to look nice for me. Just go with something casual, whatever you wear, you are still beautiful to me."

"Aw, but I want to look pretty for you on our first date. It's supposed to be memorable and I want it to be special."

"Okay then. You would be the prettiest one there, despite what you wear."

She jumped off him and turned around to face him, then slowly sat down on his lap again, but this time she was facing him, her legs just fitting between the bench and the wall. Her arms went around his neck, and their faces were inches apart. "How is it that you can find exactly the right words to say to a girl at any moment, and up till now you still haven't had a girlfriend?"

"Well, I was saving myself for the right girl. I would hate myself so much if I had missed the opportunity to be with you."

She looked deep into his eyes, and she could tell that he was being truthful. But he always was, and it was these things that he said to her that makes her heart skip a beat.

"It's difficult to come across someone as special as you are." He continued, staring back into her eyes, already starting to lose himself in them.

"I was just going to say the same about you." She gave him a small smile.

"Well, I hope Claire is not going to come along as a third wheel this time." He looked slightly annoyed.

Penny gave another laugh. "She enjoys it. Just let her have fun."

"I thought you said you wanted it to be special." He caressed the right side of her face, his thumb stroking her cheeks a little.

"And it will be. If she comes, we can just pretend she's not there. She enjoys watching us anyway; I don't think she would really be in the way of anything."

"I don't know if I would feel comfortable being intimate in front of someone else." He looked down, away from her.

She lifted his head back up and again stared into his chocolate brown eyes. "It'll be fine. You're going to forget that she is even there once we do start kissing. And I'm sure she knows that she shouldn't tag along if she wanted us to have the best first date we are going to have."

"Okay, if you say so." He replied, rather adorably.

She pulled his head closer, and kissed him softly. That was followed by a few more kisses, one of her hands running through his curly hair, and his arms moving up and down her back. He pulled back, "Are you sure we are allowed to do this in school? I feel like we are being watched."

Penny scanned around the area where they were at. "No, I don't think so. Do you want me to stop?" Her lips sliding into a grin.

"Oh god, no. Of course not. Even if we weren't allowed, I would still take you and kiss you all day if I can."

"Good." She replied, and then they continued, smiles of satisfaction all over their face until the bell rung.


	19. First Date

"Hey Dad." Penny was already clad in a simple blue dress, as she walked into the kitchen reaching for a glass to get some water. Leonard had asked her not to spend too much time picking out what to wear, but she had spent one hour just trying to pick the right dress.

"You're all dressed up, where're you going?" Her father said, looking up from the newspaper in his hands.

"Um, Dad, there's something I need to tell you." She stated, not answering his question.

Penny was shaking slightly; informing her father about a new boyfriend was never easy. But this was Leonard, and her father had already showed him more interest than every other boyfriend she had combined.

"Sure, what's up sweetie?" He put down his newspaper and sat upright, sensing the seriousness in her voice.

Her hands clutched the glass in her hands so hard that she thought it might break. "I uh-" Her nerves were almost getting the better of her. "Igotaboyfriend." She had said it so quickly that she didn't think he heard her. Nevertheless, he caught her words and raised his eyebrows, instead of changing his look to one of pure anger like he had all the other times.

"Really?" He said in a tone of curiosity like he wanted to find out who the boy is, but he was already about ninety per cent sure it was who he thought it was.

"Yeah." She replied timidly.

"Boy's finally made his move, huh?" His lips curled into a smile.

"What?"

"You are talking about Leonard, right?"

"Yeah…" Penny furrowed her brows.

"Yeah, I talked to him last week." Penny held the same expression on her face. "He called looking for you, but I think you were asleep, so I talked to him a little. Somehow we got to the topic of you two." He sounded like it was no accident that they ended up on the topic of Leonard and Penny. "Anyway, I asked if he liked you, and he was really nervous, but I just told him to just go for it." He wore a proud expression after he finished.

"Oh…no um, I was actually the one who confessed."

"Ah, really?" He folded his arms in front of his chest.

"Yeah, I-" She was interrupted by the doorbell. "I'll get it." She put the glass down on the table before stepping out towards the door. She opened it to be greeted by no one else other than Leonard.

"Wow. So beautiful." He beamed. "Next to you I'll look like someone who just got out of bed." He said, studying her.

"You don't look that bad yourself." He had a jacket over a white shirt, and was wearing a pair of black pants. His hair stayed in curls, the way she liked it. He looked pretty much like his usual self, except more cleaned up. He stepped forward and gave her a kiss, but she pushed back knowing her father could see them from the kitchen. Leonard looked confused for a second, but understood when he saw Wyatt's eyes fixed on them.

"Oh you kids have fun, just pretend I'm not here." He picked up his newspaper, pretending to read it.

"Easier said than done, Dad." Penny called out to him.

"I just need to get a few things from my room." She said, turning back towards Leonard.

"Oh okay, I'll come with you." He responded, following behind her.

When they walked out from her room towards the door, Penny noticed her father throwing occasional glances at them. "Bye Dad. I'll see you later." She grinned, knowing this was the first time her father approved of her relationship with a guy.

"Bye sir." Leonard said politely to him before they made it outside the door.

"Oh wait, I got something for you." He pulled out a small, black box and handed it to her. "Open it."

"I wasn't expecting gifts so early." She teased, opening her box, but her face changed to a look of surprise upon seeing its content. She lifted the silver chain out of its box, and at the bottom there was tiny snowflake hanging on it. "Oh my god, Leonard, you shouldn't have. How did you even get something so expensive, or more importantly, how did you get it so quick?"

Leonard simply smiled. "Anything for my girl." He replied, not answering her question. "Here, I'll put it on you." He took the necklace from her and placed it around her neck. "Alright, let's go." He placed a hand in hers, and led her to their destination.

* * *

"So, what do you want to watch?" They were standing outside a cinema, looking at a list of movies they could pick. "Romance, comedy, or horror?"

"Well, I would usually go for horror," Penny answered. "But I'm still recovering from that Disneyland trip." Leonard gave her a surprised look. "Well, let's go for comedy. I'm sure you wouldn't want to suffer through a romance movie."

"Oh I wouldn't mind. But alright, comedy it is then." He took out his wallet and joined the line.

Despite the distance between the chairs in the cinema, Penny was able to lay her head on Leonard's shoulder a few times throughout the movie. They cracked up many times through the movie, each time Penny reaching over to get some more popcorn from the box on Leonard's lap. When it finished and the lights went up, Leonard could see her face slightly red but he was glad to see her with a huge smile on her face.

"That was really good." She said to him in which he responded with a nod. "Wanna get something to eat?"

"More?" Leonard asked jokingly.

They settled themselves in a small café, sitting very close to each other, leaving no space in between. "Claire!" Leonard called out when he saw a black hooded figure walk past them.

"Claire?" Penny echoed him in confusion.

Claire took off her hood, and then slowly turned to face them. "How'd you know it was me?"

"First of all, when you are trying to stalk someone, black kind of gives it away." He gestured to what she was wearing. "Second of all, I noticed you following us when we were walking into the cinema."

"Damn." She cursed under her breath. "Oh well, I'll leave you two alone."

"Hey, wait! Since you're here, just join us." Penny smiled at her.

Leonard didn't seem to disagree, so she sat down opposite them. "Great movie, by the way." She started.

The couple smiled and nodded, and even though they had to endure the next half an hour listening to Claire talk about how cute they were behaving, they agreed with every word she said. They then proceeded to walk around the mall a little, Penny walking into several shops and trying on various clothing, but Leonard's response was always the same. No matter what she wore, she would always be the most beautiful girl in his eyes. By the time he led her back home, it was gradually growing dark, and Leonard placed a goodbye kiss on her lips before she stepped inside. Even with Claire's presence, it turned out to be a pretty good first date.


	20. Prince and Princess

**Sometimes I find it so hard to write these two, because they are so damn adorable. When they are being cute, I have to stop every few sentences and just think about how cute they are and maybe even daydream a little. Or maybe that's just me being weird. Haha. :D Well, that said, hope you enjoy this chapter! :)**

Penny limped her way towards Leonard who was facing the other direction, not noticing her arrival. An "ow" came out of her mouth with every step she took, and each time she felt a piercing pain shoot up her leg. Only when he heard her cries of pain did he turn around.

"Oh my god, what happened to you?" He rushed to her side in a flash, allowing her to lean onto him for support.

"Took you long enough." She muttered under her breath, clearly not happy with what has happened.

"What?" Leonard shot her a quizzical look.

"Never mind." She pressed her hand down on his shoulder to steady herself, but instead she felt the intense pain flow through her right leg again, as if she had just been shot there. Instantly she lost her balance, her body falling forward, but Leonard's other arm went around her immediately, stopping her from high-five-ing her face with the ground.

"Some bitch kicked me in my shin while I was at my locker." Penny said through her gritted teeth.

"On purpose?"

"I don't know. Knowing this school, probably." She let out a grunt. "I swear, if I ever see that bitch again, I'm going to kick her twice as hard."

Leonard knew best that when Penny is not in a good mood, he shouldn't do anything that would anger her further. Instead he focused on thinking of something he could do that would remind her that she had her adorable, nerdy boyfriend and that was all that should matter. Then, it hit him.

"Can you walk?" He asked with concern, his hands still holding her up so she wouldn't fall.

"I don't know. I cou-"

"Okay." He took his backpack off his shoulders and swung it across his front. "Give me." He put out a hand, palm facing upwards.

"What?"

"Your bag." Penny had no complaints about that, she removed it from her shoulder and handed it to Leonard, who flung it across his front on top of his own in a similar manner. It would be nice to be relieved of the weight of the textbooks, maybe that would help her walk better.

"Are you sure that's going to stay on?" She pushed it further towards his neck, even though it hadn't started sliding off yet.

"Well that's your job." He saw the look of confusion on Penny's face, but he didn't respond to it. Instead, he bent his knees and leaned forward. "Hop on." He said, smiling.

"Are you sure? I don't want to break your back or anything." She said, her hand now on his back.

"Hop on, for I shall be the horse that carries you back to your castle, princess." He spoke in an attempted accent as his smile grew bigger on his face.

All of Penny's anger seemed to vanish as her previously flashing eyes softened, her lips curled upwards, and slowly her teeth became visible when she broke into an affectionate smile. She climbed onto his back carefully, her legs stuck on his side. His hands went under her knees and he straightened his back, taking a few seconds to find his balance.

"Alright, here we go."

* * *

Leonard's face had gone all red by the time they arrived at Penny's doorstep. He could feel the droplets of sweat dripping down his forehead as he gasped for breath.

"Told…you….I…could…do…it…" He said between breaths.

"Do what?"

"This." He gestured at her with his index finger.

"Wha- Oooh." She said with a look of acknowledgement. "The thing about you carrying me for 15 minutes?" He nodded. "Yeah, you're my hero."

Leonard shot her a glare. "No, no, honey, I wasn't being sarcastic. You really are my hero. I think I can limp the rest of the way now, here, let me down so I can reward you with a kiss."

Leonard lowered her down carefully, and his right hand went against the wall for support. His other arm went around her waist as hers went around his shoulders, opposite of what they usually did. She then proceeded to place a soft peck on his lips.

"Can you get my keys out? It's in the front pocket."

He unzipped her bag and took out her keys, fitting it into the lock. Then, slowly and steadily he led her inside before shutting the door, followed by guiding her to her bedroom.

"Do you have a spare pillow somewhere?" He asked once he settled her down on her bed.

"Why? Is my prince going to stay with me tonight?" She questioned hopefully.

He smiled at her adorableness. "I just need something to support your leg."

"Oh, okay." She didn't hide her disappointment. "There might be one in that cupboard." She pointed in his direction.

He took the spare pillow out of her cupboard and propped her leg onto it. "Honey, don't be sad. I'll stay if you want me to, okay?" And with that, the adorable grin reappeared on her face. "Okay, you got a bruise, so I'm going to massage it, okay? Tell me if it hurts."

He placed his hands on her shin and sat himself down on the floor. He worked his hands on it carefully around her bruise, but when he started on her bruise, he heard her wince and remove his hands immediately. "Sorry. Did I hurt you?" She shook her head no but he knew that he did. "This was stupid; I should have just gotten you an ice pack. Do you have one?"

"Yeah, in the freezer."

Leonard came back with the ice pack dripping all over the floor as he made his way to her. "Okay, it's going to be cold, so bear with it."

He gently placed the ice pack onto her leg and Penny grabbed his arm instantly when the coldness came in touch with her lag.

"It's okay." Leonard soothed her.

"Here, come sit." Penny patted the spot next to her, getting a feeling of déjà vu as she remembered the last time they had spent a night together on the same bed. Leonard climbed next to her as close as he could, and laced her fingers in his. Penny laid her head onto his shoulder, and in response he laid his head on hers.

"Leonard, why do these horrible things keep happening to me? What did I do?" She sounded as though she was on the verge of crying.

He had no idea how to respond to that. "I don't know, Penny. You didn't do anything wrong, people are just being mean." He tried comforting her.

"Stay with me tonight?" She pleaded.

"I don't know if I can do much. You can't really move around with your leg propped up like that. The most I can do is draping my arm across your chest but that's usually something that the girl does, not the guy."

"Doesn't matter. Just do that. Anything for you to be beside me tonight."

Leonard loved how they were co-dependent on each other in order to survive. And that was even before they had become a couple.

"Okay?" Penny's pleading voice came again.

He gave her a warm smile. "Yes, m'lady."


	21. First Time

"Hey sweetie, I'm going to be heading out to meet a few of my friends, so I'm going to leave you at home alone for a few hours, okay?" Penny's mother turned her head towards Penny, while scrubbing the plates with a sponge under the running water.

"Mm." Penny was leaning against the kitchen counter, as she downed the remaining water from her glass. She swallowed before she spoke, "Mom, it's like 8 already, why are you going out at this time?"

"I know, I know, it's late. It was a last minute thing." Her mother replied, concentrated on the dishes in front of her.

"Where's Dad?" Penny asked, realising that the last time she had seen him was before her first date with Leonard.

"He has been working late for the past week." Her mother was now finished with the dishes, and wiping her hands with a nearby towel, turning around to face Penny.

"Oh."

"Okay, I have to go and get changed. You'll be fine by yourself, right?" She said, patting Penny a few times on her arm.

"Yeah of course, how old do you think I am?" Penny retorted, slightly rolling her eyes.

"Alright, sweetie. Just checking." She said sweetly, walking past Penny towards her room.

With her final exams coming up, Penny had actually been doing a lot of studying lately, unlike most of her group of friends, or people who had used to be her friends, she had no idea. It was no longer of her concern. This is probably the first time she could do her studying in peace, without being interrupted by them asking her out to parties or having sleepovers and encouraging her to just flunk it. Leonard had also been a factor of contributing to her studying; him just being a smart guy pushes her even more to excel. He had been of great help, explaining some things she didn't get, and even went out of his way to devise a study method that he thought would be suitable for her.

This night she had been focused in doing her homework, and only when she finished did she realise that one hour had passed since her conversation with her mother. It certainly hadn't felt so. She hadn't even heard her mom say "Bye sweetie! Don't stay up too late!" before she left the house. It seems that time flies not only when she was having fun, but also when she's doing her homework.

Involuntarily, she reached over to her phone and dialled Leonard's number, not realising having done so until she heard his voice on the other end.

"Hey honey, what's up?"

"Can you come over?" She asked, sounding more desperate than she had intended.

"Ooh, another sleepover?"

"I never said anything about a sleepover."

"Then you don't want me to sleepover?" His voice made out of what Penny could only figure as mock sadness.

"No, of course I want you to sleepover!" Penny answered, twirling a pen between her fingers. "It's just I'm home alone right now. Mom's gone out to meet friends and Dad's at work."

"You are at home by yourself?" His tone of voice changed immediately, and Penny could feel his protectiveness brewing.

"Why is that such a big deal? I've been at home by myself plenty of times!" She exclaimed, defending herself.

"Okay, I'm sleeping over for sure. I'm packing a bag, will be there as soon as I can." Penny could hear him rummaging in the background.

"Alright, see you soon. Bye." She said, hanging up not before producing a kissing noise over the phone.

* * *

Leonard had been true to his words, ten minutes later, Penny heard her doorbell ring. She made a dash to the door, opening it and throwing herself onto Leonard as soon as she saw him. Then, they engaged in a long, passionate kiss initiated by Penny.

"Wow, somebody's excited to see me." Leonard teased after they broke off, his hand still resting on her lower back. "I thought you didn't think staying at home by yourself was a big deal."

"Oh, shut up." She slapped him lightly on his chest, then grabbing his hand and leading him to her bedroom.

Leonard laid his bag at the foot of Penny's desk and sat on her bed. "So, do you have anything planned for tonight?"

"No, not really." Penny answered, shaking her head.

She stepped forward and sat herself on Leonard's lap, her front facing his. She ruffled his hair with her right hand and slid it down his right cheek, bringing her face closer to his and giving him kisses every few seconds. Leonard's hand ran through her hair and down onto her neck, when he felt the silver chain resting on it. He brought his hand forward, and the little snowflake sat on his palm. "You have this on every day?"

"Of course. Why wouldn't I?" She beamed at him.

They continued to make out for the next few minutes and only when Penny's hand went beneath his shirt and onto his back did he pull away. "Woah."

"What?"

"Are we…are we doing this?" He asked, her hands still rested on his back, the other one now gripping the bottom of his shirt.

"You don't want to?" She frowned.

"No, of course I do. I mean, are you sure?"

"More than ever." She smiled her most sincere smile at him.

"Okay. Uh, do you have a-"

"No." She replied almost immediately.

Leonard let out a disappointed sigh. Penny, on the other hand jumped off his lap and headed towards her door. "Where are you going?" Leonard asked, following behind her.

"My Dad might have some." She responded, way too casually.

"What?"

Penny entered her parents' bedroom and started looking through the drawers. "Aha! Found it!" She exclaimed, way too victoriously in Leonard's opinion. "He didn't hide it very well." She now closed the drawer, walking towards Leonard.

"I'm not sure if we should be using his." Leonard stated uncomfortably.

"Oh, it's fine. He won't find out. Besides, even if he does, I think he would be glad that we are using his." Leonard raised an eyebrow at that.

"I can't believe I'm using my girlfriend's father's condom for my first time." Penny chuckled, dragging him back into her room. "How do you even know that he has those hidden there?"

"He always gets weird when he's near his drawer." She replied.

"Ah, I see."

She shut the door and pushed Leonard onto her bed. "Woah, rough." He smirked. "So, we're doing this?"

"Yep."

"Are you sure?"

"Leonard, you asked me that already."

"Okay, if at any point I'm hurting you, you need to tell me straight away. Okay?" Leonard stared up at her.

"I'm sure you won't."

"Promise me."

"Okay, I promise I'll tell you."

"Good."

"Alright, let's do this thing."


	22. Safe Yet Scared

Leonard's back leaned against a tree, while Penny was leaning onto him her head against his chest as he was on slightly higher ground. They were in an intimate embrace, something they have gotten into the habit of doing, his arms going around her waist and hers resting on his back. She could hear the soft thumps against his chest that came every second, and just listening to the sound of it made her feel calm and peaceful, not to forget protected. She smiled in content and wished for every single day to be as perfect as this one, with no disturbance or interruptions, where the two of them could just be with each other in peace.

"I love listening to the sound of your heartbeat." She said softly, her eyes gazing at the children running around another tree not far from where they were.

"Really?" She felt him smile, then planting a gentle kiss on the top of her head.

"Yeah." She replied in the same soft tone. Her eyes continued to rest on the children for a while, and then she asked him, "Don't you sometimes wish you could just be a child again?"

"I used to wish that I could be a child all the time. Living with nothing to worry about, because you're a kid. But now I don't really want that anymore." He hugged her closer.

"How come?"

"Because if I were a child, then I wouldn't be with you." He said simply.

"Aww."

"Oh look, there's an ice cream truck. You wanna go get one?" He lifted a finger and pointed towards the ice cream truck coming to a stop beside the pathway.

"You read my mind."

She smiled at him and stepped closer, now staring into his deep, dark brown eyes, wrapping her arms around his neck, and then the next second her lips were on his.

"Come on, let's go." She put out her hand for him to hold after breaking off the kiss. He took it and responded with another smile, but he noticed that the smile that she had been wearing dropped.

"Damn it." She cursed softly under her breath.

He looked towards the direction she was staring at and the smile that had been on his face dropped too, like hers did. He pulled her closer, and said to her in a comforting whisper, "Don't worry, it's going to be fine."

They were being approached by a group of guys, Matt in the middle, leading the pack. They were all wearing black leather jackets which made them look more intimidating than they already were. "Hey, Penny. How's it going? Haven't seen you in a while." He said in a smug voice. Penny gritted her teeth trying to hold back the anger she thought had been gone a long time ago. Leonard's grip on her hand grew tighter, and she knew he was doing the same thing.

Matt cast his eyes towards Leonard, but his words were still addressed to Penny. "Really, Penny? A nerd? I'm sure you had a million better chances than that. Did your expectations in guys drop that far after me?" The few guys around him burst out in laughter, and so did he.

Before Leonard had realised, Penny's hand had slipped out of his and balled into a fist on her sides. "For your information, Leonard is a million times the boyfriend you were. And I don't need to take any more crap from jerks like you!" She had been so loud that everyone around them was now staring, but she didn't care. Next thing she knew, she was thrusting her fist towards Matt's face.

But Matt had quick reflexes, and he caught her tiny fist with his hand and threw her to the side. She skidded along the path and she could feel her skin being scraped off. She clutched her arm immediately after she felt the searing pain through it.

"Penny!" Leonard called out, making his way immediately to her, but Matt and his friends were standing in front of him in a second. "Whoa man, where do you think you're going?" Matt looked down, pushing him back with one arm.

"What the hell is wrong with you? How can you be so violent to a girl?" Leonard exclaimed.

"What are _you_ going to do about it?" He growled, and then pushed Leonard to the ground.

Before Leonard could get up, Matt had already bent down over him, pushing his shoulder back and pinning him to the ground. Leonard struggled against it, but he barely moved an inch.

"Leonard!" It was Penny's turn to call out, but she remained helpless, lying with one hand clutching the other on the ground.

Leonard showed no sign of fear on his face, because he knew that was exactly what Matt and his group of friends wanted. "Get. Off. Me." Leonard's eyes had now turned cold, his glare fixed on Matt and nowhere else.

"Be careful midget, you don't know who you are talking to." Matt spat in his face. "Maybe this will teach you a lesson."

Penny watched in horror as Matt balled up his fist and raised it in the air, evidently looking much larger than hers. His fist shot down and made its way towards Leonard's face-

Penny jolted up from her bed, instantly feeling the rush of blood to her head. Her breathing was rapid, and she could feel the sweat slowly making their way down the sides of her face. Her comforter was clutched firmly in her hands, and despite how sweaty she was, she felt cold. Penny looked over to the digital clock that sat on her table. 3:47. It had to be a bad dream, but she was unable to convince herself that there wasn't a possibility that what she just dreamt could become real. She wiped her arm against her forehead, and felt that a few strands of her fringe were covered in sweat.

She heard someone stirring on her right, and looked over before remembering the unforgettable night she had spent with Leonard, even though it hadn't been entirely over. Leonard was now rubbing his eyes and before she could stop him, he asked adoringly, "Hey, what's wrong?"

"No, no, you shouldn't have woken up." She said a little too late, while he propped himself up into a sitting position, putting his arm around her.

"Oh my god, you're shivering! You should put some clothes on!"

"Do you want me to?" She asked playfully.

"You should! Whether I want you to or not." He answered with a grin on his face, reaching over her to grab his shirt. "Here, put this on." He put his shirt over her head, and she wiggled into it.

"Thanks."

"What happened?" He asked, his arm once again around her shoulder.

"Nothing. Bad dream."

"You sure?"

"Yeah."

She slid back under the covers, and pulled him towards her as close as she could. "Good night, honey."

"Night." He whispered, pressing a kiss on the top of her head the very same way he had done so in her dream.

As they cuddled, Penny once again felt safe and protected in his arms. Once she heard the soft beats of his heart against his chest, she did feel calm and peaceful, but this time, she couldn't help but feel a little scared.


	23. Worry

**I'm really really really sorry at how late this chapter is. D: Internet was down yesterday and I couldn't get this up. Next chapter would still be uploaded tomorrow. :D Hope people are still enjoying this. :)**

Penny had tried occupying her mind with other things, like her upcoming final exams, or even emptying her mind completely, but the memory of the bad dream she had the previous night stayed imprinted on her brain. She had had many dreams before, and most of them she would forget by the next morning. She had hoped that she would have forgotten this one, but as she had expected, she could remember each and every second of it. Dream or not, Leonard would always occupy a space in her mind. It has been that way ever since she had met him; she could never get him off her train of thoughts.

Despite Leonard's warm arms around her the entire night, she had found it extremely difficult for her to fall asleep. Every time she closed her eyes, the image of Leonard getting hurt would come to her. And even when she did eventually succeed in getting rid of it, she was afraid that if she fell asleep the dream would continue from where it left off, and she just couldn't bear to see Leonard getting hurt like that. She couldn't bear to see him hurt in any way. What she had dreamt felt very real to her, and because of how well her relationship with Leonard had gone so far, she hadn't given a thought to the threats that might destroy its perfection. She felt silly that none of this has been visible to her until now.

As they proceeded hand in hand towards the school gate, every step she took made her heart beat a little faster. She reluctantly took her next step because she knew if anyone noticed them, it could be a danger to Leonard, but she noticed Leonard had come to a stop as their outstretched hands pulled her back slightly. She turned back to face Leonard, a questioning look hung on her face as she stepped back in front of him, their hands still interlocked.

"Hey, you sure you're okay?" He asked in that soft and soothing voice that he always had.

"Yeah." She lied. She didn't want to tell him about the dream she had, not yet anyway. They were having the best time together, and she didn't want for anything to come between them. She ensured herself that it would soon go away, that it was only a dream, but nevertheless like before, it still stayed in her head, refusing to go anywhere else.

"Are you sure? You're still cold, and shivering a little." He placed his free arm on her shoulder and she felt his warmth spread through her.

"Yeah, I'm fine." She replied with a smile.

"Listen honey, if its anything to do with last night, I just want to tell you that it was one of the best nights I have spent in my entire life, if not the best." He ensured her, returning her smile.

Penny felt like the luckiest person in the world. Even when she was worrying about him, his priority was making sure she was okay. She couldn't understand why there were jerks out there who would want to hurt someone as sweet and caring as Leonard.

"Leonard."

"Yeah?"

"I don't know if I've ever told you this, but I really should have a long time ago. Thank you." She said sincerely.

"What for?"

"Just…everything."

Leonard shot her another smile. "You're welcome, honey." He removed the arm that rested on her shoulder. "Come on." He said, leading her forward, but she didn't move.

"Leonard, one more thing."

He turned, now in front of her. "Yeah, honey?"

"Just, be careful, okay?"

Leonard didn't know what she wanted him to be careful of, but he gave her a slight nod, taking her words in. Penny stepped forward and planted a light kiss on his lips, still a little afraid that someone might be watching somewhere, but Leonard deserved as many kisses as she could give, and she wouldn't deprive him of that.

* * *

Penny got hit with an instant pang of worry when she arrived at their bench early. She was never there before Leonard, and immediately she started to fear that something might have happened to Leonard like she had thought. She sat there unable to remain still as she waited for Leonard's arrival, and sure enough, he got there about five minutes later speaking words of apology while holding his eye at the same time.

Penny couldn't help but worry even more. Had someone found out about them? Did they do that to Leonard?

"Sorry. I was held back at the nurse's office." He said, sitting down beside her and removing his hand to reveal a bruised left eye.

Penny held back as hard as she could from screaming. "What happened to you? Did somebody hurt you?" She spoke the words in a hurry and reached for Leonard's hand immediately to hold it.

"No!" he exclaimed. "Don't worry, I'm fine."

_That's what he always says, that he's fine. _"You don't look fine. It's okay to say it hurts, Leonard. You don't always have to appear strong. Tell me who it is, I'll find that bastard and whip his soon-to-be sorry ass." She growled as she reached up to touch his bruise slightly.

He winced as her hand came in contact with his bruise. "No, no, it's okay. It was an accident. It was during sport and I wasn't looking so I got hit in the eye by accident with the ball."

"Leonard." She was looking at him, not quite believing what she had told him.

"What?"

"Tell me the truth."

"That is the truth."

"Fine. If you say so, but you should know, lying to me comes with no good cause."

"Okay, honey." He proceeded to lean forward and give her a kiss, but his bruised eye hit her forehead before he could, and he let out a shriek of pain before covering his left eye with his hand. Penny gave a little laugh at his high-pitched scream, and he looked towards her with no amusement written on his face. "Not funny."

She simply smiled at him, but the worry that had been present since her dream did not fade away.


	24. Pause

It had been a week since Penny had that dream, and it hasn't happened again anytime in the past week. She was slowly starting to put it at the back of her head, but nevertheless she couldn't help feeling overprotective of Leonard. Part of her enjoyed it, and it did feel good to be the one protecting him instead of her being protected by him all the time. It wasn't his role for him to protect her, even though he might think so. But perhaps she might be getting the reason of why he would think that protecting her is his duty, like she was starting to think her protecting him is the thing she was supposed to do as well. However, the other part of her over-protectiveness comes with worry that she hasn't been able to shake off, and she was ready to hurt anyone that even bore the thought of hurting Leonard in any way.

As she shut her locker door, she had no idea what she was about to overhear, and the consequences that both her and Leonard had to bear because of those words. The door slammed shut, and a high-pitched voice behind her said, "Oh my god, did you hear? Matt chucked his basketball in some loser's face. And not just once. Twice! How cool is he? I'm thinking of asking him out!" Penny had no idea if they were being deliberately loud in front of her, and she almost threw herself at them. It had happened, like she thought it would, Leonard did get hurt by Matt, and he didn't want to admit it to her. She felt anger built up inside of her, not at Leonard, but at how everyone else had reacted to it. No, it wasn't cool. If they had been the one being hurt, they certainly wouldn't have thought so. She strode off quickly to Leonard, thinking that she was going to deal with Matt later, but thinking back to her dream she suddenly felt powerless against him, her smaller figure against his much larger one.

She burst out through the back door, alerting Leonard of her arrival. He noticed her face was flushed, and she obviously looked unhappy about something. "Hey honey, what's wrong?" He stepped in front of her and put an arm on hers, but she immediately shook it off.

Penny was unable to control the anger burning within her, and she found herself venting at him as soon as words came out of her mouth.

"You lied to me." Her face contained a look of pure anger and her tone was no different.

"What? When?" He knew very well what she was talking about, he had only lied to her once ever since he had met her, but he had hoped that she wouldn't find out, although it looks like she already did.

"Last week. You said you got hit in the face by a ball."

"I did get hit in the face by a ball!" He defended himself.

"You told me it was an accident. You didn't tell me Matt threw it in your face on purpose. And twice?" Her voice was growing louder and louder.

"Yeah. Look, it doesn't matter. I was the one who got hit in the face. I don't mind, Penny. Why does it even matter?" His voice was almost as loud as hers.

"Because I love you! And I don't want you to get hurt because of me."

They stared at each other, Leonard being overwhelmed that she had just told her she loved him, and Penny having realised what she just said just stood there, her mouth slightly open.

"I always thought that I would be the one to say it first." He told her with a smile. "Look, someone told him that they saw us kissing. And then he started saying all these mean things about you. I couldn't just stand there, I was going to punch him, but he threw his ball in my face." Leonard stated simply.

"Look, Leonard. I don't care what they say about me, I don't want you getting hurt because of that." Penny had started to cool down, but not all of her frustration was gone.

"I can't just stand there and watch them say those things about you."

"You know Leonard, I had a dream last week that you were going to get hurt by Matt. And I haven't been able to stop worrying ever since. Now that I know it actually happened, how do you think I feel? I cannot bear the thought of you getting hurt over me again, can you promise me that?" Penny looked at Leonard rather desperately, because she had meant those words. She wanted him to agree, that he won't risk himself for her, but given how he is, she didn't know if he would conform.

"No…I'm sorry. There is no way I could just ignore the shit that they say about you, because I know better than anyone that it's not true. If I hear anything similar to what Matt had said, I can't control myself. I would throw myself at them and defend you, and I know I would get hurt doing that." He paused and looked at her. He hated disagreeing with her, but lying to her came with no good cause either. "Penny, I know you hate it, but it's not something I can control."

"If us being together means that you would get hurt, I'd rather not risk it than continue this and feel the guilt inside me every day that you would get hurt again because of me."

Leonard looked at her in an expression of utter shock. And based on how her expression mirrored his, she had no idea that those words would come out of her mouth.

"Do…do you really mean it?" Leonard's voice was now shaking, his eyes unable to tear away from hers. She did not mean that, he looked into her eyes for some sort of sign that might tell her she might have been lying, but he didn't find any.

There was a very long and silent pause. But after that Penny did muster the courage to tell him that one word he dreaded to hear at that moment. "Yes." Her voice was as shaky as his had been.

"So…you mean…we're breaking up?" He was choking back his tears. Just yesterday they had been so happy together, never did he visualise that this was going to happen the next day.

"Maybe…" She could see him trying to hold back tears, and she was doing the same. "Maybe this is not a break up." She saw a glimmer of hope immediately appear in his eyes. "We'll say it's a pause. In our relationship. Because…because we can still be friends, right?" This wasn't the end. Maybe someday, they would be able to hit resume. But for now, she still wanted him in her life; she just can't come to terms with him risking everything for her. It shouldn't be him who takes the risk all the time, and she didn't even know just how far he would go even as a friend.

"Right…" He continued to stare into her eyes, and his vision became to blur, but he could see her eyes were just as wet as his was at the moment. "Can I just…can I do one last thing?" He had to savour every moment that he had with her, because he didn't know when he would be able to do this again.

She said nothing, but she nodded slightly. He took her in his arms, and kissed her more passionately than he had ever done in their entire relationship. Her arms went around him as well, and she didn't want her lips to leave his; she didn't know when was the next time she would be able to do this with him again, but she knew if she didn't break the kiss she would just give in. Reluctantly, she broke off, but all the while staring deep into his eyes, her arms yet to leave him.

"I love you too, Penny."

Her resolve weakened even further, and she knew if she didn't get as far away from him as she could at that moment, she would just throw herself back at him in seconds. She gave him one last glance, before running out of the door she had burst in from. It had killed her to do that, and she knew it killed him too, but she'd rather he died a metaphorical death than a literal one. He would throw himself in front of a car for her, given how he is.

When he was out of sight, the waterfall of tears she had been holding in poured out of her. Their relationship had been short-lived, but there weren't enough thanks in the world she could give to him for all he had done.


	25. Wrapped Up

Penny walked through the familiar white hall she had been walking through for the past three days, nurses and doctors rushing past her, and the occasional beeping could be heard as she walked past the rooms. Her tear-stained face was now washed off, but her eyes remained bloodshot. She came to a stop when she was outside room 411, her left arm leaning on the door as she looked through the small window pane.

The anger that had been present in her hours ago started to stir up again, this time however, it was anger directed at herself. After a few minutes of staring into the room, her mother noticed her and did a small waving motion to indicate for her to come in. She pushed open the door and walked next to where her mother was seated, pulling over a chair and sitting on it.

"You okay, sweetie? Your eyes are really red; you should go and give them a wash." Her mother suggested, looking over at her.

"I'm fine, mom. I already washed them. I'm just a little tired, that's all." She lied, not wanting to bother her mother; she already had enough to worry about, even though Penny knew her mom wouldn't mind sharing a little talk with her about her personal life. She was her mother after all.

Penny directed her eyes to where her father's head laid on his pillow, all wrapped up in bandages, but his face bore a calm expression, and he looked more peaceful than he had in days. Then she moved her eyes down to where his arms rested on top of his blanket, also covered up in bandages. She was hit with a pang of guilt, like she did every time she looked at her father's bandage-wrapped body.

"It's not your fault, sweetie. Don't blame yourself." Her mother stated out loud, as though reading her mind.

"Of course it is!" she cried out. "I insisted for him to take me out that day. If I didn't, this wouldn't have happened!"

"He was tired; he's been working late for a few weeks now. He just didn't see it coming." Her mother insisted.

"If he didn't, he wouldn't have pushed me out of the way." Penny said, looking away.

"Well, he used the last of his strength to push you away. He was protecting you."

"He could have died, mom! He was hit by a freaking car! How can you be so calm about this?" They were in a private room, but she noticed a few people walking past stare into the room when she raised her voice.

"I believe in your father. He's strong. He'll recover soon. Just look at him." Her mother gestured to her father. "He looks so peaceful, don't you think? He's proud that he's done his job as a father to protect you."

"Why is it everyone feels there's a need for me to be protected? I can protect myself just fine, and no one would have to get hurt because of me."

"Well if he hadn't protected you, you would be the one lying on this bed right now." Her mother paused and looked at her. "Have you talked to anyone about this? I'm sure you would feel better if you did."

"I was going to, but…" She felt herself already starting to tear up as she recalled what had just happened that afternoon.

Her mother looked at her with an expression that told her to continue.

"But things got in the way." She said, not wanting to get into the details. "Ugh, I wish I was the one who was hit by the car instead, that'll make me feel better. At least better than I'm feeling now."

"You want to talk about it?"

"No."

She casted another glance at her father, and for a second she could swear that it was Leonard laying there instead of her father, and she let out a gasp of horror at that.

"What's wrong?" Her mother questioned, noting the sudden fear present on her face.

"It's nothing." Penny pushed back her chair with the back of her legs, standing up. "I'm gonna go home first. See you later, mom."

"Hold on, I'll come with you." Her mother said, also rising from her chair.

"Don't you need to stay with Dad?"

"He's fine. I already talked to him in the morning. He's just sleeping." She walked over to the other side where a small table stood, retrieving her purse from it.

Penny walked out of the hospital, her mother following close behind. It was then when she felt her phone vibrating in her pocket, and the only person who would called her was Leonard, but when she took her phone out an unknown number was displayed on her screen. She did a sliding motion with her finger across the screen and put her phone to her ear.

"Hello?"

"Penny! What the hell is wrong with you? You swore-"

"Who is this?" Penny asked, interrupting the caller, even though she was pretty sure she knew who was on the other end of the line.

"Claire, of course! Where are you? Are you home? I'll go over and talk to you."

"No, I'm outside the hospital right now."

"Hospital?" She gasped, and Penny was pretty sure she heard someone else gasp along with her at that end of the line. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. It's my Dad; he was in a car accident."

"Is he okay?" Her voice was in a much lower tone now.

"Yeah, he'll be fine."

"Oh. I'll talk to you another time then. Bye."

Then she hung up. It was no surprise that she already found out about her and Leonard. She probably could have guessed what had happened just by looking at Leonard's face.

* * *

"Why is she at the hospital? Is she okay?" Leonard asked as soon as Claire hung up the phone.

He had tried to persuade Claire not to bother Penny; she probably had enough on her mind at the moment, just like he did. But she had ignored him and went on to call her. He just breathed out a sigh and buried his head back into his books. It was only when he heard the word "hospital" that it caught his attention.

"She's fine, it's her Dad."

"What happened to him?"

"He was in a car accident."

"What? Is he okay?"

"She said he'll be fine."

"I'm going over to visit him." He stated, getting off his feet and grabbing his jacket to put around himself.

"Can I come?"

Leonard glanced over at her and pondered for a moment. "Sure. Just don't give me any trouble."

* * *

Leonard approached room 411 with Claire after he had gotten Wyatt's room information from the front desk. He looked into the room from the outside but noticed that Wyatt was not present on his bed. He was about to push into the room when a familiar voice called him from the back.

"Hey son. How you doing?" Wyatt lifted the paper cup in his hand. "Just went for some water." He led Leonard into his room.

"Sir, are you okay?" Leonard looked at him, and saw that his whole body was wrapped in bandages.

"Oh, I'm fine. I'll probably be out of here in a few days." He said cheerfully, not something that one would usually expect from someone all wrapped up in bandages. "Who's this you have with you?" He looked over at Claire for the first time.

"Oh, she's Claire. My cousin."

Claire gave a little wave. "Nice to meet you, sir." Leonard raised an eyebrow at Claire being polite for the first time he's seen in ages.

"Ah, I see. Same to you." He gave Claire a friendly smile, and looked back at Leonard. "So, how are you? How are things with Penny? She's not giving you any trouble, is she? Last I spoke to her; she keeps blaming herself for this." He pointed to himself. "Girl wants to be independent; she doesn't like it when others risk themselves to protect her. Can't be helped though, ain't that right, son?"

Leonard felt like he got punched in the heart for the second time that day, but he hid his grief and covered it up with a smile. He noticed Claire was about to say something, but he gave her a warning look to silence her. He wondered if their break up, or "pause" as she had called it, had anything to do with what happened to her father. He could just picture her breaking down with him lying on a hospital bed, all wrapped up like Wyatt was, and for the first time he wondered if maybe Penny made the right choice.

Her father hadn't been informed of what had happened to them, and he didn't wish to damage him even more than he already was. So he just smiled and told him, "Things are great, sir."

At that moment, a nurse came in and told them that she had to do a check on Wyatt.

"Well, I'll get going then. See you soon, sir." But he wasn't sure when the next time he would see Wyatt was, with everything that was going on.

"Leonard?" Wyatt called him when he was halfway to the door.

"Yes, sir?"

"Just take good care of her for me, will you?"

"That I will, sir." He said with a brief smile and turned away, walking out the door.


	26. Photo Frame

Penny finished the last of her sentences with a full stop and threw her pen on the table, followed by slamming her book shut, causing some of the smaller things that rested on her table to give a little jump. Having gripped her pen in the same position for hours, her right hand now felt numb and had turned red. She desperately shook it to rid it from the pain, but that has never helped. Exasperated, she threw her head back to rest on her chair, shutting her eyes while doing so.

There was no sound coming from the outside, with the exception of the rustling of tree leaves she could hear from her partially opened bedroom window. That must have meant that her mother had returned to the hospital to stay with her father. Just hours ago, she had been bombed with questions by her mother, who had noticed straightaway when she entered her father's room that something was off with her. However, her mother already had her father to worry about, despite how well he said he felt, and she didn't need Penny to burden her with any of her problems. So all Penny told her was that she was worn out from studying, which wasn't entirely false. Her mother could tell that Penny wasn't telling her everything she should, but she dropped the subject like she knew she should when Penny didn't feel like talking to her about something.

Her mother had suggested for her to go to bed early and get more rest, but Penny was pretty sure that she had failed to achieve that. She opened her eyes and leaned slightly forward to glance at the digital clock sitting at the corner of her desk. It was almost half past twelve, and that meant she had been studying for more than four hours. She placed her left hand on the crook of her neck and gently massaged it, occasionally tilting it to the left and the right at the same time.

She had no recollection of ever working so hard in her life, and she knew that part of her being so conscientious about her studies was not for her own benefit, but for trying to wipe her mind clean of any painful thoughts regarding Leonard. And it had helped, her mind was completely focused on her work in the past four or so hours, but now that she was finished, there was space in her mind for Leonard again, and without doubt he started replacing the many formulas in her head that she had spent her time memorising.

But she knew if it wasn't for Leonard, she would never have imagined herself studying until the middle the night, and she knew that the small part of her that wanted to impress Leonard with her results still existed within her. She had wanted to see him wear the proud expression on his face when she would show him how well she had gone in her final exams, but it was probably too big a dream for her now.

And to make her feel even worse than she already was, her eyes weren't locked on the clock that she had intended to look at, but the photo frame sitting beside it. Their first picture together. She remembered every detail of that day. She noticed how close they were, and how intimately she had leaned on his shoulder even when they were still friends. She managed a small chuckle at how silly she had been, thinking that he was in love with Claire, and that it stopped her from confessing her own feelings.

She could feel her insides tightening, and she blinked away however much tears that was left inside of her. Painfully, she tore her eyes away from the picture, standing up and walking away to prepare herself for bed.

She shut out all the lights outside and stepped into her room, dressed in her pajamas She tried her best to keep her eyes away from her desk, but it found another item that reminded her of Leonard. She picked up the shirt that was lying at the foot of her bed; it had been his shirt that he had lent her on the night she had that horrible dream. He hadn't taken it back with him.

She flipped the shirt over, and after a moment of consideration, put it on over the singlet she was already wearing. Then, she looked over to her desk, grabbing the photo frame off it, and slid into her covers. She inhaled the smell that was coming off of Leonard's shirt, her right hand hugging the photo frame close to her body, her left hand clutching the necklace that was still on her neck, and sleep came to her easier than she thought it would.

* * *

At the same time, Leonard had also just finished with his work. He took off his glasses and placed it on his desk, rubbing his tired eyes and giving off a yawn. At that instant, Claire stepped into his room and settled herself on his bed. He put his glasses back on, and couldn't help but glance at his photo frame that was beside where his glasses had laid, before turning to face Claire, wiping any sign of sadness off his face.

"What are you doing up? It's," he briefly glanced at the clock, "twelve thirty in the morning."

"Well, I couldn't fall asleep. I was thinking about you and-" She stopped herself before she said Penny's name, knowing it would definitely hurt his feelings by bringing her up.

"Look, whatever happened between me and Penny is none of your business." He said a little too harshly, but with a hint of sadness in his tone. "Just forget about it, there's nothing you can do."

"But I keep thinking that there should have been something I could have done to prevent this from happening. The two of you are perfect together. I just can't let-"

"There's nothing you can do now. I thought we were, no, I still think we are perfect together. But it's what, well, you heard what her Dad said." Leonard struggled to find the right words.

"There should be at least something I can do. Remember your first date?"

"Yeah." Leonard swallowed, feeling a twinge of pain when the memory hit him.

"Remember how I was there?"

"Uh-huh…"

"Well, I actually was there in case something was to happen to you two. And something did. There was this group of guys, they were following you, but I chased them away."

Leonard looked at her and stared for a few seconds, then smiled at her. "Thanks, Claire. But I don't think there's anything you can do anymore."

Claire let out a disappointed sigh and headed towards his door, Leonard opening it for her.

"And don't bother Penny; she has enough to worry about."

Claire recognised the pain in his eyes when she saw it, and she knew it wouldn't be going anywhere any time soon. So, she just had to do what she was told without hurting him further. "Okay." She paused, looking at him for the last time before turning away. "Night, Leonard."

"Good night, Claire." He said before shutting his door.


	27. Grieving to Healing

**Early update! :D It's my friend's birthday today and I'm updating early to satisfy her, though I don't know if she would be. :S Haha, I also dedicated a one-shot to her which you guys could check out if you want. :D Anyway, this story only has a few chapters left, but for now, enjoy. :D**

The following week went by very quickly for Penny; there hasn't been a day where she felt like she was recovering from her and Leonard's "pause", she was very much still going through the grieving process. But at that moment, she tried her very best to put it at the back of her mind. She had been studying for days and days, because for once in her life, she felt like she could do well in her exams. Even though they were not together anymore, Leonard's motivation that had been with her since the start stuck with her. She was pushing herself so hard that she couldn't remember when was the last time she spoke to someone with the exception of her parents. Even now that her father was almost recovered and had returned home, the noise that stemmed in that household came from the conversation between her parents, whereas Penny just locked herself in her room and buried herself in her books.

At school she gave all of her concentration to her teachers, and shut out everyone else who tried to disturb her. She had earned a few compliments from the teachers, and she knew there were people who were gossiping about her sudden change in behaviour behind her back, but that was the least of her concerns. She wasn't there for the compliments; she was there to get all the tips and information needed for her to ace her examinations.

Penny spent every of her lunch hour that week in the school library, but a few times she found her feet automatically taking her towards where Leonard would be before she realised and had to change her direction and walk towards where she had come from. She wasn't trying to avoid Leonard; she didn't want to, she had said they would remain friends. It's just that she had no idea what to say to him if they were to stand face to face to each other. She had played the scenario many times in her head, and most of them she ended up standing there awkwardly with him, none of them having any idea of what to say.

She had hoped she would bump into him in the halls at some point, but that didn't happen, though she knew he wasn't a fan of those hallways. Because if they were to pass each other at some point, a smile from him would be enough to hold her for now.

The closest that she could get to him nowadays is his shirt that she slept in every night since she had found it. His scent hasn't disappeared; it had stayed with her, and it had helped her sleep.

* * *

Soon enough the examinations began, and after the first one she sat she immediately gained more confidence in her upcoming ones. The exam had been easier than she had expected, but probably because she had studied her ass off for them, but in the end it had paid off. She exited the hall after the examination for the first time with a smile on her face, whereas in the background she could hear various others groaning.

In the corner of her eye she caught Leonard give her what she thought was a look that asked her how it went, and even though she wasn't entirely sure that was what he was telepathically communicating to her, or if he was just looking at her, she flashed him a smile to tell him that it had went better than expected, and she swore she saw his lips inch upwards a little. She wore a proud look on her face for the rest of the day, and the little grin that she had received from Leonard couldn't make her any happier.

The rest of her examinations went just as her first one had gone, although some were a little tougher than the others, but for someone like her who had studied every day and night, it was no big problem. Also, she found herself unconsciously clutching her necklace during the exam when she blanked out, and every time, miraculously, the answer would come to her. Each day she smiled back at Leonard when he would give her a look, and by the second to last exam, his small grin had turned into a huge smile. He was proud of her, and that was what she wanted all along.

When the last exam finished she felt relief wash over her. It was over and she had done her best. All she had to do was wait for the results. Then something unexpected happened. Or at least she hadn't expected to happen that soon. She heard as his footsteps approached her, it could be easily distinguished from everyone else's, at least for her anyway. He jumped up behind her with a "Hey!" which she returned with a genuine smile.

She glanced briefly into his eyes, and she detected the hurt that she could see he was trying to hide. She couldn't deny that she was doing the very same thing. But to start bringing their friendship to where it once belonged, they had no choice but to act as if neither of them is hurting deep down inside.

"So, how did it go?" He asked, walking by her side as they left the hall, but cautious of not to touch her in case something were to happen if he did.

"Really well. I have a good feeling about it." She replied honestly.

"That's good. I'm proud of you." He sent a smile her way.

She had already known that since the first day, but to hear it from him personally was an entirely different matter. He had sent a warm feeling through her, not knowing the power of his words.

"Well, I'm going this way." Penny motioned to her left, where most of the crowd was heading.

"Okay. I'll see you around then." He turned and walked the other way.

"Bye, h-" She quickly stopped herself before she said "honey", which caused him to turn back. "Bye." She waved and hurried off not wanting him to see how red she was turning.

Despite how short their conversation had gone; it made her happy to no end. It had been forever since they talked, and when that familiar feeling stroke her again, she found herself perhaps starting to step out of her grieving process and into the healing process.


	28. Confession

**This was originally in two parts, but I cut it in half and decided to leave the next one for the next chapter. :S**

The weeks that followed her exams were easy, with all of the stress Penny had about them completely lifted, and how her and Leonard had seemed to ease right back into place. Of course, they haven't been able to be as close as they were when they were dating, but both of them knew for sure that if they wanted to, they could be all over each other at that precise moment. The problem was, Leonard was too afraid to lose her out of his life, and he wouldn't dare to do anything that had the possibility of wrecking their friendship that very instant. So to him, it was as though she was fragile, and simply touching her for barely one second would cause not one, but both of them to break.

Penny, on the other hand, stood firmly on her opinion of not wanting him to get hurt over her; the image of him lying on the hospital bed still comes back to haunt her every so often. Also, it seemed like no one else had attempted to hurt him physically in any way, so she thought that keeping at least a little distance from him was helping with that.

However, they talked like they have never stopped talking, and as each day progressed, Penny saw the darkness hidden within his eyes slowly fade away, bit by bit, and she was pretty sure he saw the same thing happen with hers too. Maybe they were the only ones who could cause each other the most pain, but they were also the only ones who could heal each other's wound that were opened.

Penny felt that they were in a really good place at that moment, but she had forgotten something that she hadn't done. Or had chosen not to do.

As she entered the kitchen for a glass of water, which had always seemed to be the catalyst for conversations with her father nowadays, he asked her the question that she had prayed days and days wouldn't ever come out of his mouth. "So how come it has been so long since I've seen Leonard?"

Penny stopped in her footsteps not turning around to face him, unable to form words with her mouth. She had been dreading this ever since she and Leonard had stopped dating, and it has been so long that it got lost somewhere at the back of her mind. She loved how her father had taken a liking and approved of one of her boyfriends, and now that she had to break it to him that they were no longer together anymore, she didn't even want to imagine how he would react to the news. She thought that at some point during their relationship, he had even mentioned that Leonard was like a son to him. The way that he addressed Leonard could be enough proof for that.

"Penny?"

"Yeah?" She turned and saw him giving her a curious look, and could see that the clanking of dishes in her mother's hands had now stopped.

"Did something happen to you and Leonard?" He asked, having no idea how much pain it was causing Penny with that question.

She breathed out a heavy sigh. She had avoided it long enough; his question was the cue for her to cough up everything she had been hiding from her parents for the past few weeks. "Um…yeah. There's something that I have to tell you."

She sat down on the chair opposite her father, and her mother had now turned away from her dishes, intent on listening to every word Penny had to say. She knew Penny was hiding something from her, and she didn't want to force it out of her daughter, but now it seemed the time has come when she was finally opening up to her parents about the matter.

Penny recounted everything that happened on that day to her parents, each word she said like a stab to her own heart. When she finished she was close to tears, although she was in a better state than any other time she had recalled that agonising scenario. Her mother's mouth hung open, speechless, and her father had a similar expression, although with anger within it. She prepared herself to defend anything he had to say about Leonard, but she hadn't thought that she would be the one that her father would be mad at.

"Are you crazy?" He bellowed, evidently taking this harder than her mother, who still sat there in shock, barely moving.

"What?"

"He is a perfectly nice guy. Where else are you going to find another Leonard?" He had now risen on his feet, slamming a palm on the table.

"I know he is! I told you, I don't want to be the source of his pain!" Penny shouted back, also rising from her seat.

"If you don't, then you shouldn't have broken up with him in the first place! Do you not realise that you are also causing him pain by doing so?"

"I know that! Do I look like I have another choice? Those assholes will then always have an excuse to beat him up!" Penny was never one to swear in front of her parents, but right now, she found it hard to control the words that came out of her mouth.

"Penny, it's a man's job to protect the ones he loves." He stated.

"No, it's not! And you know how much I hate that, Dad."

"Nevertheless, it's true. Look Penny, scars can heal in time. But emotional wounds, those may take ages to heal. What you have done to Leonard, was probably a hundred times more painful than what that bastard did to his face. Let yourself be protected, Penny. Stop being so stubborn."

Penny didn't have a word to say to that. With that, she stormed back into her room, slamming her door as loudly as she could as she passed. Her mother, still in shock, and even more so from the shouting, simply slid her hand up and down Wyatt's back to calm him down, but it helped neither of them.


	29. Letter

Leonard was leaning slightly forward, a piece of paper clipped between his forefinger and his thumb. His eyes had scanned it once, twice, three times, and now he was staring down at the letter in his hand, carefully taking in each and every word printed on it. It couldn't be a mistake, nor could it be possible that he had read it wrongly, as he had already proven to himself with the previous readings. It couldn't be a dream either; he had attempted to blink it away, and even pinching himself, which he had turned out to regret, but everything stationed in his room remained intact. He was unable to tear away from the letter, and right now in his mind he didn't know what to think of the news he had received. Was it a good thing? Or not? The answers might have already come to him by now if not for his no longer plain and boring life. If he had received this many months ago, he would be tired out from jumping up and down by now. But now, he didn't know, nothing was easy for him anymore, and this certainly isn't lying anywhere close to the 'easy border'.

Two consecutive knocks were made on his bedroom door, and he didn't move until another two came again. Alerted by the sudden disturbance, he lifted his head, only to cause the room around him to spin a little because of the overly extended duration in which he had been hanging his head. He steadied himself with a hand on his desk, then paced towards the door opening it, to find his cousin, Claire, holding a stack of paper in one hand, and a blue ball point pen in the other. She waved at him briefly, then went pass him to sit on his bed. Upon witnessing the unusual behaviour, he raised his left brow at her. Since when had she knocked?

Placing himself back down on his black leather turning chair, his eyes once again rested at the piece of paper he had been fixed on for at least the past hour, and it occurred to him, that Claire might have the solution to his dilemma. He held it out to her, and she took it without hesitation, immediately taking in the content. When she had finished he caught her eye, and the next instant she was scribbling something on the top of the stack she had brought in. She held the once blank paper up, and there was only a single word written on it.

_Wow._

Leonard only glanced at her, and she was once again scribbling something beneath the single word she had written.

_This was expected though. _

"What's wrong with you?" Leonard finally said, breaking the silence that has been his room for the first time that day.

When she raised the paper again, Leonard gave her a nod of understanding along with what sounded like a soft "ah…".

_Throat hurts._

"I don't know what to do." He stated, simple and straightforward.

_Go with what your gut tells you to do._

Leonard proceeded to give her a 'are you serious' look.

_Ask yourself, which of your options is most important to you? _

"If I knew the answer, I wouldn't be talking to you about this. They are each important in their own ways…"

_What if you could have both?_

"I don't know…I would feel really selfish for doing it. She has her life here as well, and besides, am I even worth leaving everything behind for anymore?"

Claire returned the look she had received from Leonard earlier. She looked down and started writing again, the pen squeaking every so often as it came in contact with the paper. It took a while before Leonard could start reading what she had written.

_Well, then you would have to find out. Just ask her about it. I'm about 90% sure that she would agree to run away together. Besides, what life here does she have except for her parents, and she's bound to leave them eventually. I doubt they would mind though, given that it's you. And are you seriously asking me that, have you not known her long enough? You are practically her life. _

"It's the whole selfish thing all over again…and we're not running away together. If people knew it wouldn't count as running away." He paused, studying the piece of paper Claire returned that he had become familiar to. "How am I supposed to ask something like that?"

Claire stared off into space for a moment, and suddenly her whole face lit up; her eyes widened, a smile was formed across her lips, and Leonard could even visualise the imaginary glowing light globe blinking on top of her head.

She happily wrote the next words, passed the paper to Leonard, and continued her words on the next sheet although the written words did nothing to further his understanding of whatever she was thinking about. _I know! I know! I know! _Those were the only words on that particular piece of paper, and he chuckled slightly at how childish she could be sometime, and even being able to convey that just on paper. She passed him the next few sheets of paper one by one, each only containing half or a quarter of a sentence on it.

_I've been thinking a lot…_

_About you and Penny…_

_I know you told me not to…_

_But I've had this idea in my head…_

_About what you could do to win her back…_

_And this might just be the perfect situation for it…_

_For what you want to ask her and anything else you might want to say to her…_

When she handed him the final and last piece of paper in her hand, it was not ended with three dots, but a single full stop. He stared at it like he did the letter, and glanced back up to look at Claire as if it was the greatest yet most terrifying idea she must have had. His heart sped up against his chest, and his face contained an unsure expression.

"Do it." She croaked, speaking for the first time. "For her…for you…and me." Claire grinned placing a hand over her throat holding it, and then cleared it. "Water…" She walked out of the room as politely as she had entered, and paced towards the kitchen.

Leonard removed his phone out of his pocket, and smiled as his home screen of him and Penny came into view. His thumb hovered around the home button, his nerves preventing him from touching it. But when he finally made up his mind about the matter, the phone vibrated in his hand, the surprise almost causing him to lose his phone to the floor. He unlocked the phone only to notice a text message from Penny. It had been a while since they had communicated during the night. Leonard's smile returned when he read her message, because coincidentally he was going to type the exact same thing to her.

'_Hey. :) You free?'_


	30. Bus Stop

A few seconds after Penny sent out her text, Leonard replied with one that put a smile on her face despite her current mood. _Could always count on him to make me smile in moments like this. _

'_Yeah. I need to talk to you.'_

It sounded serious, whatever it was that he needed to talk about, but Penny couldn't tell since it was a text message. She had sought him out perhaps for comfort, or simply just someone to talk to, in which case the 'someone' had always been him in the past. For a second she thought it might have been rather weird since they hadn't communicated after nightfall for quite some time now, but he had agreed and the thought was wiped out of her mind instantly. She typed her response to him quickly.

'_Me too._'

Her phone buzzed a few moments later indicating his reply.

'_Alright. I'll go over.'_

Clearly the conversation that they were going to have, he didn't want anybody else to be present, since Claire would be over at his place. But given the circumstances in her house at that time, it certainly wouldn't be any better. She was no doubt still contained with anger from the argument she had with her father earlier, and without even trying to take a look outside her room she could tell her father's mood was no different from hers either. Leonard's presence in her home would be of no help to the tension whatsoever. Leonard had not yet learnt of the dispute, and Penny was sure she didn't want him to, so she wrecked her brain for any other location that they might be able to meet up and talk without the slightest chance of getting interrupted or disturbed.

No thoughts came to mind, and Leonard was probably already halfway to her house. Giving up, she shoved her keys and phone into her pocket, threw on a jacket and walked out right pass her parents who were still sitting in the kitchen to the front door. She had to get out of the house, and think as she walked, worst comes to worst they could probably just have their talk in the middle of the deserted pathway.

As she placed her hand on the doorknob, her father's voice rang through the house. She knew she wouldn't be able to get away easy. "Where do you think you are going, young lady?" His voice was raised, like before, and Penny felt some of the suppressed anger rise back up in her. But before she could reply, she saw out of the corner of her eye her mother place a hand on his and softly said, "Let her be, Wyatt."

With that, she wrenched the door open and stormed out. She stuffed her hands in her jacket pockets as the cold breeze struck her, walking towards the direction she knew Leonard would be coming from. And minutes later, she noticed a figure walking towards her. She couldn't make out the face in the darkness, but from the approximate height and body shape she recognised the figure as Leonard. In order to be sure, she called out his name.

He heard immediately and jogged towards her. "Penny? What are you doing outside? It's dangerous out here in the dark."

"You wanted to talk, right?" She responded.

"Yeah, but-" He retorted, but she cut him off before he could finish.

"It's better out here."

Penny couldn't see it, but she could tell Leonard was giving her one of his sceptical looks.

"What? Right here?"

"No, of course not." She scanned her surroundings when she noticed a source of light not too far away from where they stood. She pointed towards the direction of the light, and told him, "Let's go over there."

They came to a stop at what appeared to be a small bus stop, and settled themselves on the bench which was provided. A street lamp lit up the area around them, and Leonard's face was now fully visible to her as hers was to his. He appeared tense, and seeing it Penny couldn't help but feel nervous at what he was going to tell her. She opened the conversation casually to try to relax him.

"So, what's up?"

"Um, there's something I have to ask you."

Penny noticed him shake a little, and she was very tempted to place her hand on top of his. Instead, she went with a smile knowing that would help just as much. "Sure, what is it?"

"Okay, um, here's the thing. Um…I wanted to ask if you are willing to um…" He didn't finish his sentence, then turned away from her, realising as much as her how flushed he had become. Penny didn't think she had ever seen him so nervous; they were always comfortable around the other, with the exception of the period of time they hadn't seen or talked to each other. She found his nervous trait cute and endearing, but those thoughts were soon pushed to the back of her mind; they weren't supposed to be there in the first place.

"What is it?" Penny repeated.

It took Leonard a while to turn back and face her, and even then the colour did not disappear from his face. He was looking everywhere but into her eyes, and in a soft voice he asked, "Will you go to prom with me?"

Then it was Penny's turn to turn red, and it was as if she could hear her heart thump faster and faster against her chest. Back when they were dating, prom wasn't a problem. It had been obvious that they would be going with each other, and possibly stay in a corner where they wouldn't be seen by anyone else. And she couldn't deny that for the past few weeks she had been secretly hoping that Leonard would ask her. But as each week went by her hopes dropped and she started to think that she would have to go by herself. She had been approached by a number of guys when she walked through the hallways, but she had denied them all, leaving them upset and dejected. If she was going to go with anyone, it had to be Leonard.

But now he had asked her at the most unexpected moment ever, and she was shocked. It took her a while to recover from it, and when she finally took the courage to look back into his eyes, those warm, brown eyes that she couldn't resist, she said yes.

"You will?" His face was brightening up, the shock slowly slipping away from his face.

"I will." She nodded.

She beamed, and threw herself onto him to give him a hug. He reciprocated it, and they relaxed into each other as they touched for the first time in weeks. The comfort, warmness and familiarity of their hugs returned, together with what they were both afraid of, the electricity contained within it. Both of them felt it, but chose to ignore it, as there was nothing they thought they should do about it at the moment.

When they finally ceased the hug, their hands didn't leave one another as they shared an intense look which made every hair on Penny stand; she refused to look anywhere beneath his eyes because she knew if she did, it would knock her defences right down and she would be on him the next instant. At the same time, Leonard was also fighting a battle with his mind that was telling him to kiss her; he wouldn't until she had agreed on the other question he had to ask of her. But now wasn't the time, he would have to wait until prom.

Their hands left each other, and Penny inched herself closer to Leonard, already craving his touch the moment it left her.

"That was scary." He broke the comfortable silence that had started to surround them, laughing a little.

"I could tell, you're sweating like crazy." Without any thought she reached up and wiped the visible beads of sweat off his forehead. And again, electricity passed through them. Penny opted for another smile.

"Claire suggested it."

"No wonder you were so nervous." She teased him, sending a playful grin his way.

"I mean, I have thought about it before, but I didn't know if it was a good idea." He said, feeling a need to explain himself. She responded with a nod before he continued, "So, what did you need to talk about?"

"Nothing. I just wanted to talk." Leonard smiled at that, he had forgotten how much he loved that whenever she needed someone to talk to, he was the first one she would find.

"Okay." He replied, and by the time they woke up the next morning, they would find themselves in each other's arms at a bus stop.


	31. Prom

**Not much this chapter, this is just setting up for the next one, which would probably be the second to last chapter. Also, I feel like I haven't said this in a while, thank you for all the reviews! :D I appreciate each and every one of them. Enjoy! :)**

Penny paced nervously up and down her living room, her heart almost leaping out at her throat. She was almost fully dressed, this time in a sleeveless black dress that hugged her thin figure perfectly, with the exception of her heels. Her blonde hair splayed across her back, and only with a light touch of makeup, she looked as stunning as ever. Her arms and neck were bare, and hanging on her neck was Leonard's snowflake necklace; she never had any intention of taking it off. It has lain on the same spot ever since Leonard had put it on her, never once leaving her touch. Barefoot, she strode back and forth from her couch to her TV, and occasionally during the process she would unconsciously bite her lower lip.

Every single day following Leonard's request she was no less nervous than the last, and on one particular day she had turned completely red just by having Leonard in her presence. Now that the day has arrived, it felt as if all her nerves from the past two weeks compiled on her. Getting nervous around Leonard was a feeling that was new to her, she had always been comfortable around him, but she enjoyed it. She actually enjoyed the nerves. It wasn't very often, or perhaps, never, that she ever feels this nervous around someone. _A man that can stir up many of her emotions. _Lately, she had had qualities Leonard possessed that others don't randomly popping up in her mind, and by now she had a list. It was as if her mind was making decisions without her permission, pushing her back towards Leonard, and constantly reminding her just how much she yearned for him.

It helped that her parents had left the house earlier that evening, and she found more freedom of space in which she could relax, but failing very much to do so. Her father's chastising had died down over the week, but without doubt if he had known about her and her prom date; it would be a long time before he would shut up about it.

The doorbell made her jump back a little, before composing herself and taking a few deep breaths, then marching confidently towards the front door. She was greeted by a very different Leonard, he was obviously no longer in his hoodie and jeans combination, but clad in a black tuxedo, his tie matching the colour. When her eyes reached his face she noticed that his glasses were gone, now replaced by contacts, which made his chocolate brown eyes glimmer in the darkness. His hair was the only thing that remained the same, and as usual she just wanted to run her hand through his curls.

"You look…smart?" She said finally, unsure of which adjective would be most appropriate at that moment.

"So, I don't usually look smart?" He teased, grinning at her.

"No, no, I mean-you-er-I-um…you know what I mean!" Her nerves were nowhere near gone.

He continued to beam at her.

She leaned closer and sniffed around him, trying to identify the scent that had been present since his arrival. "Are you wearing cologne?" She asked, half serious and half mocking.

"Yeah." He looked slightly embarrassed. "It wasn't my idea."

"Claire?"

He simply nodded and she did too in understanding.

"Okay, you ready to go?"

"Yeah, just a sec." She disappeared from his sight and returned seconds later a few inches taller, clutching a small black purse on her side.

Then, Penny noticed that they have yet again managed to coordinate their clothing without knowing what the other was wearing. This was the second time since their date. She smiled a little after she locked the door, holding the hand that he had offered to her. He led her down the few steps, and when she glanced back up she noticed the shape of a car in the distance.

"You got a chauffeur?" Penny raised her left brow.

"Mm…sort of."

He opened the car door and made a gentleman-like gesture allowing her to step inside, before following suit and closing the door behind him after he sat down beside her.

"Hey Penny! Haven't seen you in a while." A familiar, enthusiastic voice said to her, and only when she looked into the rear view mirror did she remember who it belonged to.

"Hey Claire." She replied, trying to sound as enthusiastic as Claire was.

Claire gave Leonard a wink and a thumbs-up before chauffeuring them off to their destination.

When they arrived, Leonard got out of the car first and walked around the back to Penny's side, then opening the door and offering a hand to help her out. "You're very good at this." She smiled, complimenting him.

"Have fun!" Claire called out from inside the car. She turned to Leonard, "And to you, good luck!"

Then she sped off.

"Alright, here we go."

Leonard grabbed hold of Penny's hand and together they made their way inside to where they were supposed to be seated. As they walked pass Penny noticed people throwing glances at them and not being able to make out who Leonard was. Penny loved it, and Leonard was too enjoying it himself. They found their seats and at their table were faces that neither of them recognised, luckily for them.

For the first hour they just ate and had a conversation between themselves, shutting out the surrounding noise and people around them. Occasionally, a group of girls would walk pass to stare at them, and Penny could tell Leonard was getting uncomfortable rather than enjoying it after a while. Penny stared at them as though they were stepping into her territory, and they would leave without a word.

Then, when she thought those girls couldn't get any worse, one of them actually went up to them and asked Leonard for a dance right in front of Penny's face. She was no doubt starting to rise with anger, she just wanted a peaceful night with Leonard, but with all these interruptions it felt like it was never going to happen. But Leonard response to the girl was short and simple; there was no hesitation in his voice.

"Sorry, I'm reserved for tonight." And when the girl looked for a second hopeful perhaps having plans formed in her head not for that night but for another, Leonard spoke up before her mouth could move, "And every other night. I belong to only one person and I will forever be faithful to her."

Dejected, the girl walked away into her group of friends who were now laughing at her. Penny's heart got caught in her throat the second time that night. There it was again, the ability to stir up many of her emotions. _I belong to only one person and I will forever be faithful to her. I belong to only one person and I will forever be faithful to her. I belong to only one person and I will forever be faithful to her…_ That sentence was chanted in her mind through that entire night.


	32. Beginning of a New Life

When the next song came on, Leonard sat his now empty plate down on the table and stood up in front of Penny. His left hand went to his lower back, and he held the other one out to her, bowing slightly. "May I have the pleasure?" He added.

Penny chuckled, then placed her plate next to where his one laid, and fitted her hand into his, "Of course." As she was being led by Leonard to the dance floor, she noticed the girl from earlier throw her a disgusted look, and saying something to friends along the lines of "What's so good about her anyway?" Penny ignored her, and turned her head back, admiring Leonard from the back. She was trying very hard to hide her excitement, she hadn't realised that they have never shared a dance before, and now that she was just seconds from doing it, her insides were leaping for joy.

He came to a stop on an empty spot on the dance floor, somewhere not too close to the centre and not too far away either. Just somewhere they could be alone, and when they do start dancing, it would just be the two of them; everyone else vanished from the room. Being in the spotlight wasn't exactly their style anyway; they preferred quieter and more isolated places, where they could share not among others, but just with themselves. They were the ones who truly understood each other, and the pair of them knew that perfectly.

Penny was a little taller than usual, but she still managed to lean her chest against Leonard and her head on his shoulder. Leonard did the same, hardly with difficulty, despite the small change in their height difference. They swayed in comfortable silence to the slow rhythm of the music, and Penny inhaled his intoxicating scent. It was the cologne that he had said he put on earlier, and she felt as if he had become more masculine. But beneath all that she could detect his usual scent, the one that made her feel comfortable, the one that helps her go to sleep every night. She smiled, something that the familiar scent always allowed her to do, even though she knew he couldn't see it.

Leonard was taking in her fragrance as well, and she smelt as good as always; a part of her that manages to distract him no matter what. However, his eyes were fixed on another object. His focus never left the silver chain around her neck as they danced, and it meant so much to him that she continued to wear it even after all that has happened. "You still wear it." He said, more of a statement than a question.

Penny need not know what "it" was referring to, she knew perfectly well. She responded quietly with a "yeah", as she felt his finger trace the back of her neck where the chain lay. It was as if they weren't already standing close enough to each other, and with the addition of his finger coming in contact with her skin, a warm feeling spread through her, but at the same time she felt as if she was going to explode into a million pieces knowing just how dangerous his touch was.

That wasn't the end of it. He then placed a soft kiss on the sensitive spot on her neck, knowing exactly where it was. "Mm." Penny let out involuntarily as a shiver was sent through her, and she swore she could feel Leonard smirking because he knew full well just how much he was torturing her. However, as the next words came out of his mouth, he sounded tense and serious. "Penny, I need to talk to you about something."

"Hmm?" She responded still not yet recovered from his touch. But then the music came to an end, and they were still attached to each other, while other people were already leaving the dance floor. Leonard noticed this, then detached himself and grabbed her hand leading them away. "Come on." Penny followed behind him to wherever they were going, as she soon realised that they weren't heading back to their seats.

He led her through a glass door to the outside, and she caught the words that were being announced over the speakers. "And now, for the announcement of this year's Prom King and Queen…" The announcer's voice faded as she shut the door. She didn't care who would be Prom King and Queen; Leonard looked like he had something very important that he had to say and she was going to give him her full attention.

They were standing on what looked like a balcony, and from there it held the view of the ocean not too far away. It was vast and empty, moonlight was bouncing off its surface and Penny could hear the waves hitting the shore every few seconds.

"Penny…" Leonard began as she turned back to face him. "I struck a jackpot the day I met you, but I didn't win a jackpot, I received something way better. _You_."

Penny softened when she heard his declaration, but still having no idea where he was heading.

"Last week I received a letter." He continued, "I was offered a spot at a college."

Penny smiled, though it wasn't something she wouldn't expect. She knew he would be offered one, given how smart he was. "That's great, congratulations!" She said, feeling very proud of him.

"That's not it. I also got offered a temporary job at a university, and there is a chance that it might become permanent if I take it."

"Wow." She spoke. "That's huge."

"Yeah." He nodded in agreement. "The problem is that's all in the city, and that's way too far from here. If I take it, I'm going to have to move and find a place by myself in the city."

"If? You haven't given them an answer?"

"No, but I would have to by tomorrow." He replied.

"What's holding you back?" She asked, though she was pretty sure she knew the answer to that question.

"You are." He said softly, though it didn't come as a shock to her. He needed her as much as she needed him. "Penny, if I were to live a life without you, it wouldn't be worth living at all. I love you, so very much and it is not possible for me to set you free from my life. I know you are still scared of all that stuff about me getting hurt, and I am too. But school is not the same from the real world Penny. I don't know much about it, but I'm sure not everyone is as mean as the people we meet here. It's probably just our bad luck. After tonight, we would be graduated high school students and we would finally be able to get out of this hellhole. You know what? Maybe you can protect me then, I think you would love doing it. I have realised what I am going to ask of you is very selfish on my part, and it is a hundred per cent fine if you say no. But, will you come and live with me if I take the job?"

Penny was stunned, not just by his second time of declaring his love for her, but for the entire speech that he had just given her. She knew he was right, after they leave, they would never see these bastards again, it would be different out there, a start to a whole different journey. She wanted badly for him to take the job, and she wanted to go with him, but will her family approve? Was she too young to leave home?

"I'd love to, but what about my dad? And my mom? I don't know if they will be okay with it." She replied.

"Oh, I already asked them. They loved the idea, weirdly, I thought most parents wouldn't want their child to move into the city and live with a boy at this age. Your father was especially supportive of it, and he even said something like I don't care what you have to do, you need to make sure she agrees to it." He laughed, probably recalling the memory.

"You talked to them? When?"

"Oh. Was that something I wasn't supposed to do? Damn, I should have asked you first." He said, suddenly nervous.

"No, no, that's fine. They just didn't say anything about talking to you."

They were silent for a few moments, and Leonard's voice penetrated it. "So, you would come with me then?" His smile was getting bigger by the minute.

She said nothing, but pulled herself to him, tangling her hands behind his neck and kissing him firmly on the mouth. _God_, she's missed doing that. When they reluctantly drew away their huge grins were reflected on each other's faces. "So, is that a yes?" Leonard asked teasingly. Penny bit her lower lip and responded with a nod. "Oh, Leonard." She hugged him close, burying her head into his shirt.

Leonard's hold on her wasn't any looser either. "Resume?" He asked.

"What?"

"We paused, remember? So resume?" He questioned, a playful tone in his voice.

"Yeah." He felt her nod against his shoulder.

"This is the beginning of our new lives."

She nodded again.

"Leonard?" She mumbled through his shirt.

"Yes, honey?" She could hear just how long he had waited to say that again.

She smiled against his shirt. "I love you too."

**I know I said there would be two more, and there will be another one, but the next one will be the epilogue, so this is really the end of their high school journey. I never intended for them to go past high school, I wanted to start it there and end it there. So, if anyone was hoping for a time skip sort of thing, I'm sorry to disappoint. . Don't know if anyone was though. :S Anyway, if I can I might upload the epilogue tomorrow, if not I will definitely do it the day after. But I think it might be pretty easy to guess what's going to happen in the epilogue. :D**


	33. Epilogue

**And here's the last one, the epilogue. I've had this in my head ever since I started writing the first chapter. Hope you will enjoy this last chapter!**

**Oh, and I realised I've only said this in the first chapter, but I'll say it again, to wrap things up in a way, I guess? I don't own any of the characters. Probably just Claire. Have fun! :D**

Leonard pulled the car to a stop beside where Penny stood on the sidewalk, waiting for him to take her home as usual. He stepped out of the car and walked around it, greeting her with a soft kiss on the lips.

"Hey, honey." He said with a soft smile.

She returned it; even after all these years she has never managed to resist his charming smile. "Hey."

He moved his eyes to a little below her neck, gliding his hands under the necklace she still wore after the past 8 years they have been together. He brushed his thumb across the little snowflake, slightly reminiscing about their times together.

"What's wrong?" She asked, now a concern look on her face.

"What? No, nothing." He replied, the necklace now sliding out of his palm.

"It's never nothing when you touch the snowflake." She looked down at the object hanging on her neck, and reached her right hand up to caress it a little as well.

"No, I was just thinking about how long it's been for us, you know. Can you believe that we've been together for so long? I'm kinda proud of us." He said, brushing a few strands of her golden hair back.

"Yeah, me too." She replied quietly, smiling at him.

"Here, put this around your eyes." He produced a black strip of cloth from behind his back, offering it to her.

"What? Why? Am I being kidnapped?" She joked, taking the black cloth from him.

"No, but I have a surprise for you." He answered, hands going around her to help her with the knot.

"Oooh. Yay!" She was beaming at him, and all he could think of is how beautiful she is, even while she was blindfolded.

His hands went to both sides of her upper arms and he leaned forward to peck her on the cheek. "Here." He opened the car door and helped her inside, strapping the seatbelt around her. Then, he went around to his side and buckled himself up, starting the car.

"Where are you taking me?" She questioned, obviously curious.

"It's a secret. But I think you would really like it." He turned the car out into the main road. "Just rest a bit okay, honey? This is going to take a while."

"Alright." She relaxed further, her head edging a little to the left.

* * *

"Okay, we're here." Leonard announced, the car slowly coming to a halt. He shifted it back to park and switched the engine off. Penny could hear as he reached for something in the back seat. It sounded like a bag of some sort, a backpack probably.

Penny reached down to feel for the seat buckle, and with a click she released herself. Leonard noticed and reassured her, "Just stay there honey, I'll do all the work."

Penny smirked, and even with a blindfold he could see the look she had in her eyes. "Well, that's not something you hear all the time."

He smacked her playfully, and immediately her hand went to where his had just hit her. "Ow!" She exclaimed, mocking hurt. She tried to swat him back, but being temporary blind she couldn't see where he was, and he eased himself out of the car before she could do so.

Soon after she heard her side of the door open, and his arms went around her to help her out. He closed it after her and locked the car, then led her towards wherever they were going. She heard something creak as he pushed them past it, and even without looking the place felt very familiar to her.

"Do I know this place?" She asked, as she carefully took her next step, making sure not to fall over even though Leonard was already supporting her with his arm firmly secured around her.

"Sure do."

After taking about another twenty steps, he stopped and she heard him turn to her, as he asked, "Here? Or go straight?"

"Here's fine."

He walked them for about another twenty or so steps before she heard the sound of sweeping, probably him cleaning the seat for them, and told her that it was now okay for her to remove her blindfold. She obeyed, and even in the darkness she could make out immediately where they were. How could she not? It was where they first met after all. She turned to him after he had set down his backpack, and was now giving her one of the biggest smiles he could manage. She looked at him as though she couldn't believe it. "Are we even allowed in here?" She asked.

"Yeah, I asked for permission. I was one of the best students here after all. It was just to be sure, the back gate is never locked anyway."

They sat down on the bench that they would always use to sit. "God, I miss this place." She laughed. "Never thought I would say that, remember how much we dreaded it here?"

"Of course." He agreed.

There was a moment of silence as they leaned back, glancing up at the stars glimmering in the night sky as she rested her head on his shoulder.

"Honey?"

"Hmm?"

"This was where we fell in love." He told her.

She nodded.

"This was where, I discovered you, an amazing woman." He pressed his lips to her temple. "So kind, so strong, so beautiful, so perfect."

"Aww." She smiled up at him. "It's where I discovered an amazing man too."

"And you are still all those things. I love you for that."

"I love you for you too." She said wholeheartedly, kissing his cheek.

"Do you remember when you asked me when I started discovering my feelings for you?" He asked, still glancing at her with adoration.

"Yeah, you wouldn't tell me, but you promised it to be ten times better when you do."

He smiled at the memory. "Yeah. Well, I was captivated by you the first time we met. With no doubt, my feelings started growing stronger with every meeting we had."

"Really?" She exclaimed, surprised. "Wow, it took you even longer than I did to admit your feelings."

"I guess that doesn't really matter now, because Penny?"

"Yeah?"

He never completed the question. He lifted his head up for the first time and glanced straight ahead to where the fences stood. She followed his gaze and was confused at first because nothing happened, but then something started glowing and it caught her eye. Then, another ball of light lit up, followed by another, and another and another, until they formed what appeared to be the letter W. Then, it was followed by an I, then two Ls, and by the time the message got across she simply stared at Leonard in shock, and what she said next hadn't been what she had intended to say.

"Aren't you supposed to be down on one knee?"

Now he was the one to look at her in shock. "Crap." He dropped down on one knee and fished out a little black box, opening it to reveal a beautiful engagement ring. "I can't believe I forgot to do this. And it's the most important step of the process too. You were just too mesmerising." He admitted.

She smiled, and removed the engagement ring, sliding it into her ring finger. She nodded and leaned forward to kiss him, and followed by a small peck after they have broken apart. "How did you even manage this? You are so amazing, I love you so much."

But before they could answer a squeal was heard from the distance. "Light bulbs, and that would be Claire. She's here for a few weeks, and naturally when I told her I was going to propose to you, she pestered me to let her help with something."

"Ah, I see." She let out a small laugh; it has been too long since she had seen Claire. Claire was running towards them now, and when she stopped in front of them she reached forward to both of them for a hug.

"Haven't seen you guys in so long! And look, you are more in love than ever!" She exclaimed.

The couple laughed, and Penny asked, "How've you been, Claire?"

"Oh, really good! Engaged too, a few weeks ago." She revealed the engagement ring that rested on her finger.

"Oh, congratulations!"

"I could say the same to you." She laughed, pointing at Penny's ring. "Anyway, I'll leave you guys alone. Thanks for letting me do this Leonard, if I have the time I'll call you guys and maybe we could go for some coffee or something."

"My pleasure." Leonard responded.

The couple waved goodbye to her as they watched her walk away. When she was gone, Leonard asked her, "See, ten times better right?"

"Way more than ten." She paused, then turned to Leonard again. "When we arrived, you asked me if I wanted to go straight or stay here. What if I had said go straight? Where would we have gone?"

"Cafeteria."

"Why? I thought you hated that place."

"Well, there's something else I haven't told you."

Penny raised her eyebrows.

"This is where we truly met face to face for the first time, but when I first saw you, it was in the cafeteria. I don't know if you know this, but I was staring at you. You were pretty pissed at your friends, but still, you looked so beautiful." He grinned at her.

"Oh my god, that was you?" She exclaimed.

He nodded, still smiling. "Anyway, never mind that. Do you still remember the very first time we met?"

"Every single detail." She replied to his question.

"You want to do it again?"

"What?" She looked to him in confusion, and saw him pick up his bag and removed the contents of it. It contained some clothes which she realised were the clothes they were wearing on that day.

"Let's do some acting." He spoke, passing her clothes to her.

"I love you so much." She told him as she pulled on her clothes, which still surprisingly fit her.

"Aw honey, I love you too." He kissed her lightly before she stepped out of her seat. She turned and walked up the steps, getting to push through the back door, and readying herself to relive the beginning of their fairy tale.

She threw one last smile at her fiancée, who now had a book in his hands, and pushed through the doors, standing behind it as it closed. They were starting from the beginning again, except, this time, she knew exactly where she was going to end.

**So, I guess that's it. It makes me sad that this story has come to an end; I really had a lot of fun writing it. :D Again I have to thank my two reviewers, zhalen565 and 5Mississippis, who have been with me since the start and reviewing every single chapter, thank you so much. :) And to all my reviewers, thank you. :) I really appreciate every one of them and they all make me smile. :D Anyway if you have either read or reviewed or done both of those things, you wouldn't be leaving here without a thank you. So, thank you. xD To be honest, I'm really much more of a science/math person than one who could write. I never had much faith in my writing, and to get over 100 reviews and so many views is pretty overwhelming for me.**

I don't know if any of you still remember from the first chapter where I had Penny notice someone staring at her and did a double take, but then the person was gone. I wonder if anyone guessed it to be Leonard. xD It was just a little something I dropped in there. :D

Also, another thing that really makes me sad is that season 6 is coming to an end. I'm not spoiled, but knowing the synopsis it seems like we are get some good Leonard/Penny stuff. I don't know how I'm going to go another four months without my L/P fix. I always dread this time of the year. This season has gone by too quickly.

Anyway, enough of me. If another idea strikes me, I will write it. So, see you guys soon, I hope. This has been a lot of fun, and I hope you enjoyed it. :D


End file.
